“Are you saying he didn’t? Are you maintaining the baby is mine?” He’d had no idea how badly he wanted the baby to be his until now. His eyes pleaded with her to confirm it. To say that he was the father.

The indecipherable mask was back on her face again. “I don’t maintain anything,” she said, frost dripping from her voice.

Frustration hit him like a ton of bricks. She had shut herself off again and nothing was going to open her to him. He wanted to put his fist through the wall.

“I’m going out for a while,” he finally ground out. “I’ll bring back lunch.”

He turned and stalked out before he said things he’d only regret.

As he made his way to the underground garage where his BMW was parked, his cell phone rang, rudely intruding on his thoughts. “What?” he barked into the receiver.

“Ryan?” His mom’s voice bled through his dour mood.

“Sorry, Mom, didn’t mean to snap.” He opened the door and slid into the seat, settling back, not bothering to start the engine yet.

“Ryan, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, Mom, just a busy day. What’s up?”

“I was hoping you and Jarrod would have dinner with me tomorrow night.”

Ryan closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose between two fingers. There was no easy way to say this and his mom would know soon enough now that Jarrod had been over. Best she know now so she could get used to it. “Mom, you should know…Kelly is with me…and she’s pregnant.”

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end followed by thick silence. “I see,” she finally said. “I guess inviting Roberta is out of the question.”

Ryan blew out his breath at his mother’s snippy tone. Roberta Maxwell was a woman his mom had been shoving at him ever since Kelly had disappeared.

Though his mother had never come out and said I told you so, she didn’t have to. It was there as plain as if she’d hung a banner.

She’d never approved of Kelly. Never liked that Ryan was marrying her. She’d been polite, though. Ryan had demanded it of her. He wouldn’t allow any of his family to disrespect the woman he’d chosen to be his wife.

After what had happened with Jarrod and Kelly, he’d expected his mother to be more smug; but she’d been oddly sympathetic. The last thing he wanted at the moment, though, was to bring Kelly to an awkward dinner where his mom would sit with that pinched look on her face and Jarrod would say God knows what.

He’d wondered what would happen when the inevitable confrontation with Jarrod occurred. Now he knew, and it hadn’t gone at all as he’d imagined.

“I think we’ll do dinner another time. Kelly and I aren’t up to it at the moment.”

He said his goodbyes and hung up, starting the car and slamming it into Reverse. He needed some distance before he went off the deep end.

He drove aimlessly and ended up at his office building before he even realized that he was heading in that direction. He didn’t often drive, and usually only when he was leaving the city. He kept his car parked and used his car service. But today he hadn’t been in any mood to wait for pickup.

He parked and went up to his office, acknowledging Jansen’s look of surprise since he’d just told his assistant that morning that he wouldn’t be in for several days.

He waved off Jansen’s question of whether or not he needed anything and shut the door to his office. Then he flopped into his chair and swiveled around to stare out the window.

The weather had turned cold and gray, much more suited to his mood. After spending several days in Texas, where it was a good deal warmer, even in winter, coming back to the cold of the Northeast was a bit of an adjustment.

His cell phone rang, and he almost didn’t answer. It was Cam, and Cam would want to know what had prompted his departure from Moon Island. Ryan was supposed to fly back to New York with Cam and Devon but he’d left in a hurry with a flimsily uttered excuse.

Deciding not to delay the inevitable, he put the phone to his ear.

“You and Dev make it back?”

“There you are. Been trying to call you for the past twenty-four hours. Where the hell did you go in such a hurry?” Cam demanded.

Ryan sighed. “My investigator called. He found Kelly.” There was dead silence and then he heard Cam murmuring to someone else. Probably Dev.

“And?” Cam finally said.

“She was in Houston. I left the island to go and see if it was her.”

“And?” Cam asked again.

“It was. I brought her back to New York with me.”

“You did what? Why the hell did you do that?”

Ryan sighed at the incredulity in Cam’s voice. And then because he needed to unload on someone, he said, “She’s pregnant, Cam.”

“Oh, Christ. What is with all the pregnant women showing up? I’ll ask you the same question I asked Rafael when Bryony appeared out of nowhere. How do you know it’s yours?”

“I don’t believe I said it was mine,” Ryan said mildly. “What I said was that she’s pregnant.”

“Uh-huh, and you’d just bring your ex-fiancée back to New York with you because she’s pregnant with someone else’s baby?”

“Don’t be a smart-ass. The thing is, it could be my baby. Or it could be my brother’s. Are you seeing my problem now?”

“Man, I’d say you have a whole hell of a lot of problems that I’m glad I don’t have. What does she say about all of this?”

“That’s just it. She’s pissed. At me. She acts like I’ve wronged her. I don’t get it. She hasn’t said whose baby it is. She hasn’t denied that it’s my child but neither has she confirmed that it’s mine.”

“Has it ever occurred to you that she doesn’t know?” Cam asked dryly.

Ryan scowled and then pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

“Sorry, man, it had to be said. If she was sleeping with you and your brother plus God knows who else, she probably doesn’t have a clue who the baby daddy is.”

“God, stop with the snark. You’re giving me a headache. Kelly isn’t some whore.”

“I never said she was.”

“You implied it.”

“Look, you’re getting pissed at the wrong person here. I’m just asking—as a friend—whether you’ve lost your everloving mind. But then again, I thought you were insane for hiring an investigator to find her. Well, you found her and now you have to deal with the fallout. I’ll tell you just what I told Rafael when he was faced with similar issues. Call your lawyer. Get paternity testing done.”

“I don’t want it to come to that,” Ryan said quietly. “Damn it, I just want to know what went wrong.” He broke off and shook his head. This was a pointless conversation to be having. Cam was an unforgiving bastard on his best day. As soon as he heard what Kelly had done, he’d basically written her off. Cam might be a hard-ass but he was a loyal hard-ass.

Cam was silent for a moment. “Look man, I’m sorry. I get that this has you tied in knots. Personally, I think you ought to go out, have a few drinks and get laid. Come off that self-imposed celibacy stint you’ve been on since you threw her out. But I know you won’t so I won’t go there.”

Ryan laughed and shook his head.

“Dev wants to talk to you a minute so hang on.”

“See ya,” Ryan muttered to empty air.

A second later, Dev came on the phone.

“I won’t repeat all Cam has said other than to ditto everything. What I wanted to tell you is that I’ll be out of pocket for a while.”

“Oh? Eloping with Ashley?”

Dev muttered a not-so-nice directive and Ryan chuckled.

“No, there’s an issue with the construction and we’ve already suffered so many delays on this project that I don’t want to risk any more. I’m going down there myself. It’ll be quicker than conference calls and playing phone tag.”

Ryan frowned and then leaned back in his chair. “How soon were you planning to leave?”

“Day after tomorrow. I’d go sooner, but I can’t. And Cam is going to be out of the country starting tomorrow and I can’t very well ask Rafe to leave his honeymoon.”

“Ah. So really you and Cam were calling to see if I’d do it.”

“Well, yeah, but after hearing what’s on your plate, I’ll go. I can break away after tomorrow.”

Ryan thought a moment and then made a split-second decision. “No, I’ll go.”

“Whoa. Wait a minute. I thought you had Kelly with you. A pregnant Kelly.”

“Yeah, I do. I’ll take her with me. It’ll be perfect. It’ll give us time away from… It’ll give us some time alone to sort things out.”

Ryan could hear Dev sigh all the way through the phone.

“You honestly want her back? After everything that’s happened?”

Ryan gripped the phone and stared out his window. “I don’t know yet. I need some answers before I make that kind of decision. But if she’s pregnant with my baby, I’m not letting her go again.”

“Okay, you go. I’ll email you all the issues. Just keep me posted and let me know if you have problems. I can be there at a moment’s notice.”

“Will do. Look, I know you and Cam think I’m nuts, but I appreciate you having my back.”

Dev’s dry response was immediate. “Yeah, you’re nuts. But whatever makes you happy, man.”

Ryan hung up and stared at the phone for a long moment before summoning Jansen. He gave him a list of instructions, starting with the need for Kelly to see an obstetrician immediately. She’d need a doctor’s clearance to travel, but if the doctor gave the okay, he planned for them to spend a few days alone. And maybe they could start putting the pieces back together.

Then he started a shopping list, ignoring Jansen’s grimace. Kelly needed outfitting from head to toe.

Five

Kelly sat cross-legged on her bed, staring into empty space. She couldn’t stay here. She’d been stupid to think that she could exist in an environment where she was exposed to Jarrod.

It had been all she could do to keep it together. She was furious that she’d sat there while that bastard stood in the doorway with his bewildered look of innocence, but she’d been paralyzed the moment he’d walked into Ryan’s apartment.

She hated the feeling of helplessness and she’d never, never allow herself to be such a passive respondent again. Going forward, if she saw the bastard, she’d kick his ass, pregnant or not. And then she’d tell Ryan precisely what he could do with his precious brother.

She hated Jarrod with a passion she reserved for few things in her life. And she hated Ryan for turning his back on her when she absolutely needed him the most.

No, she couldn’t stay here. Not a minute longer.

She forced herself to consider her alternatives. This time she wasn’t fleeing on ragged impulse without caring which way the wind blew her. No, she would come up with a solid plan of action. She’d go someplace quiet and safe—a good place to raise her son or daughter.

“You’re leaving, aren’t you?”

Ryan’s voice came from the door. She started guiltily and finally raised her eyes to his. Angry because she allowed herself to feel guilt even for a second, she hardened her gaze as she stared back at him.

“There’s no reason for me to stay.”

“Come with me into the living room,” he said, holding his hand out to her. For a long moment she simply stared at his outstretched hand. She should refuse, but something in his voice made her comply and she slipped her hand into his much larger one. He pulled her up from the bed and led her into the living room.

Sitting on the couch, he pulled her down beside him. He ran an agitated hand through his hair. “I’ve been an ass and I’m sorry. You’re in no condition to bear this stress and pressure and I’ve only added to your burden.”

She opened her mouth to speak and he placed a finger over her lips. “Let me finish. I’ve been in the office all morning and I’ve got some problems arising with an extremely important project that my partners are unable to attend to. Problems that require my immediate attention and presence. I want you to come with me.”

She stared blankly at him. Why? She didn’t get it. Why torture themselves? Why was he so persistent in flogging the dead horse that was their relationship? He’d been the one to end it. He had rendered judgment and tossed her aside like she’d never meant anything to him.

She opened her mouth to ask him just that, but again, he silenced her with his finger.

“Let me take care of you, Kelly. Let’s forget for the time being all the problems in the past and just concentrate on the present.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I’m very serious. I’ve never been more serious in my life. We have a lot to work out. We can’t do that if we aren’t willing to spend the time together and talk.”

She’d never wanted to break down and cry more in her entire life. If only he’d been willing to listen before. If only he’d been willing to talk, to understand then. The one person she should have been able to count on above all others had coldly looked through her and called her a liar. And now he wanted to kiss and make up?

He touched her face with his fingers, and she was surprised that they trembled against her skin. His eyes were imploring her and she wavered on the edge of indecision. God, was she actually contemplating this farce? Even as she posed the question to herself she was shaking her head in automatic refusal.