Kitabı oku: «Secret Baby Spencer», sayfa 2

Chapter Two

“Jenna couldn’t have stirred up Tyler, Wisconsin any more than this if she morphed into an Osterizer blender,” Seth murmured the next morning, staring through the open door of his private office toward the windows in the lobby. Deciding against shrugging into the muted brown suit jacket that matched his slacks, he ignored the hammering of his heart as she parallel parked in front of the bank. Or, more accurately, tried to parallel park.

Nervously, he knotted an olive tie that was neatly tucked under the collar of a white shirt he’d pressed himself. Six weeks hadn’t been enough time to adjust to not having Chinese laundries where he could drop off his shirts, but watching Jenna, he suddenly wished he’d done a better job of ironing his rumpled sleeves and cuffs. He looked the last way he wanted to—like a man desperately in need of a woman’s care.

Despite his apprehension—or, more accurately, hope about what Jenna was doing in Tyler—Seth smiled, taking in her seventh attempt to wedge the noisy, dented gold tank between Nora Gates Forrester’s new Miata roadster and Marge Phelps’s red Dodge truck. Jenna, who hadn’t yet realized she had a good six feet to spare, was now drawing a crowd on the sidewalk. “If more people show up, maybe I’ll sell popcorn and peanuts,” mused Seth. “Maybe even funnel cakes.”

Not that Jenna looked particularly pleased about having an audience. Knowing her, the Smashing Pumpkins or Nirvana were blasting from the radio, anyway, so she wouldn’t hear anybody coaching. Because of the way she was hunched over the wheel, turning it with all her might, Seth figured the Cadillac lacked power steering. As she painstakingly angled between the other two cars, she craned her head toward the child who was strapped in back, then whirled toward the windshield again.

Even from here, she looked so gorgeous that Seth’s breath caught. His heart clutched, too, not that his impenetrable features would allow anyone to guess it. He knew right then that Jenna Robinson wasn’t leaving his office until they made love on the smooth, polished mahogany surface of his desk. If the truth be told, he’d been fantasizing about that for weeks. A plan formed as he swept the work papers into a drawer. The second she came through the door, he’d kiss her senseless, pull her against his chest and hold her as if he’d never let go. Gently, he’d lift her, carry her to the desk and…

The more he thought about the countless things he wanted to do and say to her, the more Seth admitted he’d never wanted a woman so badly. “Unbelievable,” he whispered.

Jenna Robinson was really in Tyler, Wisconsin. Maybe she cared about him, after all. When he got to work this morning, he’d heard the news about her arrival, but he hadn’t really believed it. After the way his mother had left Tyler years ago, maybe he’d never fully believe a woman could care for him. Old emotions died hard, he guessed. The well-oiled Tyler gossip machine turned out to be right, though. After all, it wasn’t every day that a gold Cadillac lurched into Tyler.

This was the story Seth had gotten: Feeling naturally curious, Nora Gates Forrester had called Martha Bauer at Worthington House last night in hopes of finding out who the woman in the gold Cadillac was, since Martha usually knew everything. Martha couldn’t identify Jenna, however, so the two women conference-called Tisha, who was still at The Hair Affair. No one having their hair done had recognized Jenna, but after she checked into the boarding house, Anna Kelsey kindly called Lydia Perry, who then called Reverend Sarah Baron, who called Jenna at Kelsey’s to say her husband, Michael, wanted to look at the car muffler and to invite Jenna to Sunday services at the Tyler Fellowship Sanctuary—all of which meant that by the time Molly Blake arrived at the S&L this morning to discuss the loan for the bed-and-breakfast she wanted to open, he’d already found out from his brother that the new resident at Kelsey’s was Jenna.

“Jenna Robinson?” Seth had asked Molly anyway. As much as he hated gossip, he had been unable to stop himself from asking for more confirmation. “You’re sure, Molly?”

Molly had frowned as if suddenly terrified her loan might be jeopardized by her association with Jenna. “I hope that’s all right,” she’d said worriedly. “You did recommend her, didn’t you? I’m getting together with Jenna today, to discuss the promotional materials for the bed-and-breakfast…materials I’d hoped she could share with you tomorrow. I thought you two were friends…”

“We dated in New York,” Seth assured her.

Before he could remind Molly that he was a banker, not an ogre, Molly raced on, “Oh, good! Jenna sounded so nice on the phone, and she begged me to keep this news of her coming to Tyler a secret, so I did. I guess my saying so now doesn’t matter, since you know she’s here, but she wanted her arrival to be a surprise. She must simply adore you.” Molly lowered her voice. “And we all saw the cute little girl with her. She was strapped in the—”

“Back seat?” Seth had said, grinning but raising his eyes in surprise. “She’s about two? Chubby, with a big grin and squinched up nose? A spray of blond hair she keeps pulled back in bow-shaped barrettes?”

Molly giggled. “Sounds about right.”

“That’s Jenna’s boss’s daughter,” Seth hadn’t been able to stop himself from confiding, feeling eager for news of Jenna. Sure, he dreaded getting more deeply involved and courting the old, hurtful feelings left by his mother’s abandonment, but nothing more than hearing Jenna’s name practically did him in. It felt good in his mouth; speaking it reminded him of the dark, sensual hours they’d spent, and even now, he could almost feel her hair catching on his lips. “Jenna’s like a second mother to Gretchen,” he’d added with a frown, thinking of the child he’d come to know while dating Jenna. “It seems strange that she brought Gretchen here, though.”

“Oh,” Molly had laughed, blushing. “And here I was thinking the baby was—Oh, I don’t know what I was thinking, Mr. Spencer! I just guessed that maybe…”

Seth couldn’t help but catch Molly’s drift. “That the baby was mine?” A soft, startled chuckle had escaped his lips. The idea had taken him by surprise, but shouldn’t he have considered fatherhood before now? He was thirty-seven. Some men his age had kids who were heading off for college. If the truth be told, Seth liked the idea of kids; they were cute, funny and sweet. It was only women that worried him. “No wonder you want to open the Breakfast Inn Bed,” he’d managed to say aloud to Molly. “You’re obviously a romantic.”

“True, but the inn will be profitable,” Molly assured, her eyes narrowing as she continued surveying Seth. “Maybe I shouldn’t tell you this, but you’re right. I’m a romantic. Since you said you and Jenna dated in New York, maybe you should know that everybody took note of the wedding dress in the front seat of her car. Everybody wants to know if you two are…”

Somehow, he’d controlled his shocked expression, his mind reeling. Jenna had brought a wedding dress to Tyler? “Considering getting married?” he’d finished for Molly. “Not that I know of. If Jenna’s got that on her mind, she sure hasn’t informed me yet.”

Now he swallowed hard, his throat feeling dry and raw. What could be the meaning of Jenna’s bringing a wedding dress to Tyler? He was definitely the only man she knew here. Had he been wrong for the past six weeks? Had she really missed him as much as he’d secretly missed her? Had he been a fool not to offer her more trust?

“Looks like she might have come here to propose to me,” he murmured, feeling stupefied as he blew out a shaky breath.

Earlier, he’d been so overwhelmed that he’d barely heard the rest of Molly’s spiel as they’d continued discussing the status of her loan. Unfortunately, in addition to needing start-up capital, a neighbor who didn’t relish having a business next door to her was causing Molly some trouble. Seth hoped things would work out. He liked Molly immensely and wanted to give her the money, but protocol demanded he see her property first, something he’d said he’d do tomorrow with Jenna, since Molly wanted him to review Jenna’s plans for creating promotional materials.

By tomorrow I’ll be engaged. The voice came from nowhere, and Seth realized it was probably true, given that Jenna had breezed into Tyler with the wedding dress. “A wedding dress?” he’d said at one point to Molly. “Are you absolutely positive? You really saw this?”

Molly had nodded. “You could see it plain as day in the front seat of that car,” she’d assured. “I wasn’t that close, but Nora was in the window of her department store working on the Halloween display, so she got a better look. The streetlight was shining right into the car, she said, so she could see that the dress was of lace and sequins, and since it took up half the front seat, Nora figures it’s floor-length with a full skirt. If a veil’s needed, Nora said she just got some in for the bridal boutique. You know,” Molly added, “the one she just opened in her store.”

Seth hadn’t heard about the boutique, but there was enough detail in the description to convince him the rumor about the wedding dress was true. Strangely, none of his usual panic had descended when he thought of standing at the altar with Jenna. Deep down, he trusted her, didn’t he? He’d known her a long time. Hell, some couples tied the knot after knowing each other only a few weeks, right? And it sure did look as if Jenna had come all the way out to the boondocks to claim him.

Sure, he’d felt a little worried last night when he’d only thought the woman in the car was Jenna. But now he knew it was her. And if she’d come all the way to Tyler with a wedding dress, couldn’t he assume she’d want to make some kind of commitment? Didn’t that mean she might not abandon him in the future? All this time he’d told himself he was marriage-shy, but wasn’t that merely defensiveness?

Now he watched her get regally out of the car, her tall, slim body floating upward. She slammed the door and leaned into the back seat for Gretchen. A smile tugged his lips when he saw the baby girl he’d come to adore. A black knit cap was snuggled down around her ears, and Jenna had dressed her in black jeans and a leather jacket. Unbidden came the thought, Why not have kids of our own? I’m thirty-seven, and Jenna’s only thirty-four, so it’s not too late. There’s plenty of time. He thought of how much he’d loved hanging around with his brothers, Quinn and Brady, when they were kids, and of how much fun he’d had when he, Sue, Dom and Jenna had taken Gretchen trick-or-treating for the first time last Halloween. That was exactly a year ago. Suddenly, it seemed hard not to imagine Jenna—craftsy as she was—making costumes for their kids. In a year or two, maybe he and Jenna really would have a child….

“I don’t know,” he murmured. Maybe he was jumping the gun. Maybe Molly had gotten things all wrong, and there was no wedding dress. Seth guessed he’d find out the truth soon enough.

Outside, Jenna stepped around the Cadillac and to the curb, and he drew in yet another sharp breath at the sight of her. Six weeks without her had definitely been rough. In fact, right now he felt as if someone had given him a shot of straight testosterone. Despite that, he chuckled and shook his head, seeing that Brick Bauer and Lee Nielsen had stopped on the sidewalk to gape at her.

Any man would.

Yes, indeed, Jenna Robinson was quite a sight for Tyler. As usual, she’d done something new, inventive and wild with her hair. Jagged streaks of red shot through the jaw-length, auburn strands, and the cut made it look as if she were wearing a cap of soft, exotic feathers. Involuntarily, Seth’s fingers flexed with the need to touch it, then he licked where his lips had gone dry. Around the long, slender column of her swanlike neck someone—probably Gretchen’s mom, Sue—had painted a temporary henna design that resembled a lace choker.

Everything inside him tightened as his eyes drifted down to where the sides of a chic, A-lined, thigh-high black leather coat fell open over a tight, powder blue lace top, and by the time Seth’s eyes hit her miniskirt, he was a complete goner. A groan escaped him as he took in the hip-hugging fabric. “What am I going to do with you, lady?” he whispered.

She had the sort of endless, mouth-watering legs that went on for miles, and that seemed to beg a man to bend them and kiss the tender taut flesh behind her knees. Right now those scrumptious legs were encased in silver, black-patterned tights. Tall, skinny, knee-high boots were threaded with red laces that zigzagged up her slender calves.

By some miracle she didn’t look the least bit trampy. Given her clothes, she should have. But Jenna could slip into the most outrageous attire and waltz down a sidewalk looking like a centerfold for Class magazine. Her features were simply too refined to allow for the wrong impression. Her heart-shaped face was delicate and finely boned, and she held her perfectly formed mouth almost primly as if to ensure onlookers that she didn’t put up with any nonsense. The expression wasn’t just for show, either, as Seth well knew. On occasion, Jenna Robinson was a girl who came out—loud and proud—as a girl with attitude.

Her strange mix of prim censure and vampiness had first captured Seth’s attention—and imagination—nearly two years ago. Now his gaze riveted on her eyes, or at least what he could see of them, since they were obscured by round, wire-rimmed sunglasses.

Shifting Gretchen on her hip, she resolutely headed toward the front doors of the bank, making Seth feel more oddly nervous than he had in his whole life. All at once, he was aware that his palms had gotten damp, something that hadn’t even happened during the last stock market crash. Today was different, though. Infinitely more nerve-racking. Not only had the woman he’d left back in New York shown up in Tyler, but she’d apparently come bearing a wedding dress.

“Here’s to you, Ms. Robinson,” he whispered.

“HOW COULD YOU let this happen?” Jenna mouthed worriedly. Once Seth met her in the bank’s lobby and said hello in that smooth, melodious baritone that drove her so wild, she should have known her plans would derail. They always did.

Just looking at him had filled her with hopelessness. How could she tell him she was marrying Dom? Sure, she’d lain awake all night, carefully imagining herself charging into Tyler’s S&L to deliver her rehearsed speech about being pregnant and getting married. She’d practiced until she felt fully prepared for the encounter, buoyed up by Dom’s proposal and the fact that she was six weeks pregnant with a baby who needed a father. Dom loves you, Dom loves you, Dom loves you, she’d reminded herself, the words going through her mind like a mantra this morning as she’d gripped the wheel and rounded the town square in Tyler, driving toward the bank.

“All this time we’ve worked together,” she’d remembered Dom saying, his gentle voice brimming with emotion, “my feelings for you have grown, Jenna. And now that Seth’s back in Tyler, it’s my first real chance to tell you how deeply I feel, to ask you to marry me.”

“Somebody loves me,” she’d whispered when the S&L came into sight. “No matter what Seth says, I won’t forget Dom’s waiting for me in New York.” Countless times this morning, she’d changed clothes, and at least until she’d arrived on Main Street, U.S.A., she’d been sure her outfit was conservative enough for the bank…conservative enough to show Seth she was calm, cool, collected and not the least bit ruffled by how easily he’d left New York and their relationship.

When she’d gotten out of the car in Tyler, however, people had turned to stare, immediately reminding her of why she’d fled Bear Creek, North Carolina, years ago.

Well, let people look, she’d fumed silently as she’d headed inside the bank with Gretchen, working herself into a tizzy, already imagining her final, grand exit. She’d tell Seth, once and for all, that she didn’t need him, that everything was different now. Dom loved her so much he’d proposed, she’d announce boldly, then she’d push through the lobby doors and head straight back to New York. Imagination being what it was, she kept seeing herself hop into something far flashier than the dented Cadillac.

Not that it mattered. Like all best-laid plans, something had gone terribly wrong, and before Jenna could even open her mouth, Seth had chuckled. “Some car you’ve got there. I hope it was free.”

Was that all he intended to say after six weeks of separation? After Jenna had traveled all the way across the country to see him? She’d glared at him. “Are you saying you have a problem with my car?”

“Nope. It’s better entertainment than a movie. Everybody in Tyler’s talking about it. Martha Bauer swears it once belonged to Elvis, and when Jack Moray came in to deposit his weekly checks, he admitted he almost towed it from where it was parked in front of the Kelsey Boarding House last night.”

Curious in spite of herself, she’d said, “Jack Moray?”

Seth had nodded. “He’s a tow-truck owner. He thought it was abandoned, but Michael stopped him.”

“Michael?”

“The minister’s husband.”

“Oh, right. Sarah Baron. She’s the minister who called me,” Jenna had said, hating to admit how much she’d warmed to the show of down-home hospitality. She truly did despise small towns, she’d assured herself, and since Seth Spencer now lived in one, Jenna was very determined to keep it that way.

“And the man at the curb,” he’d continued, “the one staring at your inspection sticker. That’s Cooper Night Hawk. He’s a deputy.”

“I’m legal.”

Leveling her with an assessing male stare that had her fighting a shiver, Seth had softly returned, “You sure as hell don’t look legal, Jenna.”

“Come near me and you’ll get arrested.”

“You brought handcuffs?”

She’d shot Seth a look of censure. “Manacles.”

“Hope you’ll want to throw away the keys.”

At that tantalizing juncture, she’d at least gotten out the first five words of her planned speech. “Seth, we need to talk.”

“We’ll start with sweet nothings and go from there,” he’d assured lightly, the words of promise turning her legs to water.

By the time Jenna found herself standing in his office, she’d decided it was hopeless. Even moments before, as she’d steeled herself against him, Seth had managed to relieve her of Gretchen so quickly that the baby could have been a greased watermelon. He’d placed a guiding hand under Jenna’s elbow in that damnably sexy, gentlemanly gesture she was so determined to forget, the one that made her feel so much like a woman, and the next thing she’d known, he’d been slipping her coat from her shoulders and employing a bank teller to baby-sit Gretchen.

Now Jenna stared around his office. “Well,” she managed dryly, “here we are.”

Smiling, Seth shut the door, then quickly twisted the lock.

Her mouth dropped. She’d missed him physically, but she definitely had more self-respect than this. Holding out her hands, palms up, she schooled herself not to lose her nerve. “What I have to say isn’t that private.” She glared pointedly at the lock.

“No?”

Seth didn’t look convinced. In fact, he looked completely, unnervingly in control, reminding Jenna of exactly why she’d come. For once, it would be a pleasure to tell this man she had her own agenda. Her heart missed a beat. Why did the father of her coming baby have to be so handsome and commanding? Ever since she’d first laid eyes on Seth Spencer, she’d found him irresistible. He was a good six inches taller than she—six-foot-two to her five-eight—with dark brown, chocolate-colored hair he kept neatly trimmed over his ears. Slightly spiked bangs jagged onto a high forehead, accentuating brown eyes that shouldn’t have been so interesting, but that did crazy things to her insides, anyway. His squarish face was set with a hard, practical mouth that reminded her of how well he kissed and hinted at the mysterious moody silences she’d come to expect from him on occasion. Why was he so moody, though, she wondered now. What complaints could Seth have? He’d told her his mother had died years ago, but otherwise, his seemed to be a trauma-free childhood in a town that Norman Rockwell could have painted. As far as Jenna knew, he’d always been successful in his undertakings, not to mention groomed from birth to run this bank.

Whatever the case, Seth’s looks shouldn’t have made him so mouth-watering, but he was, and that annoyed her. Well, that, and the rumpled shirt he’d tucked into soft brown wool trousers that looked far too expensive for Tyler. The damn shirt made Jenna want to do the most foolhardy things for him, like set up an ironing board in his living room. Even worse, the bemused tilt of that hard, uncompromising mouth said Seth knew it.

“I’m waiting,” he said.

“Unlock that door.”

His lips stretched further, in a smile that both warmed and irritated. “Why? So you can run for the lobby, Jen?”

Jen. Why did he have to call me Jen? Jen was a pet name he reserved for special moments, such as when they were naked and wrapped in each other’s arms. She braced herself. Mentally rehearsing her speech for the last time, she felt unreality sweep through her. Suddenly, she felt like a bit player in a bad, low-budget zombie film, as if she was locked inside a room with Seth Spencer, but she couldn’t move or speak. It was as if an unseen hand had just appeared from nowhere and clamped down hard over her mouth. I’m pregnant and marrying Dom. Just say it!

Seth was still smiling.

And despite the promises to herself, something in Jenna’s heart gave. She didn’t want to react to him, no more than she wanted to react to this bank. The Tyler Savings & Loan, she thought. Seth’s bank. It was just as he’d so often described it to her, a simple brick building with a clock tower overlooking the town square. He’d always sounded so proud.

Maybe I’m being too hard on him, she found herself thinking as she gazed into brown eyes that were so ordinary and yet so strangely beguiling. She’d always known he was going to return to Tyler someday, right? It wasn’t as if the man had lied. Maybe it wasn’t right to drop the news on her so casually, but he’d never made a secret of the fact that he was being groomed for this job. Still…

I thought he’d gotten serious about me and would ask me to come.

But he hadn’t. And years of living with Ralph and Nancy Robinson had made Jenna tired of settling for less love than she deserved. Pushing aside the thoughts, she tried to hold onto her resolve. She was definitely marrying Dom within the week. It was the right thing to do, both for herself and the coming baby. It hurt, but she forced herself to think about how much time she and Seth had spent apart. Even while they’d dated, he’d made clear that he didn’t want to deepen the relationship. He’d never warmed to the topic of having a family…

Despite the circumstances, she found herself craving just one kiss from him. “You look good, Seth.” The words slipped out.

“You don’t look bad yourself, Jen.”

She edged back, against the door, her eyes darting around the simple, well-appointed office. She frowned when she saw the clear top of his polished wooden desk, and she wondered if he was happy with his move. “Doesn’t look like you’re keeping yourself too busy around here,” she said with concern. He’d always been so active on Wall Street.