Chapter Thirteen

Lydia wasn’t sure what to do the next day. She awoke early that morning and Jake was still at the hospital. So she got ready for work as she normally would and ended up arriving at Danvers almost an hour ahead of schedule. She was preoccupied with Jake and thoughts of where if anywhere they went from here when she plowed right into someone. “Oh, sorry,” she automatically said, then jumped in surprise as a hand settled on her arm.

“Good morning, Lydia. Looks like we’re both early today.” Mark smiled at her. “Crystal was just getting dressed when I left, so she won’t be here for a bit.”

There was something so charismatic about Mark even though she wasn’t attracted to him. He was darkly handsome, with an infectious sense of energy that emanated from him. Shrugging, she said, “I decided to get a jump start on the day. I was worried about Casey and Jake, so I didn’t sleep that well.” Then the thought occurred to her that Jake might not have let Mark know what was going on yet. “Did Jake tell you that his daughter is in the hospital?” Her throat tightened just thinking of the beautiful child that she’d grown to love suffering the pain of a broken arm. She didn’t care if Jake or Chris wanted her there. She was going to see Casey on her lunch hour.

“He called me earlier this morning.” Mark nodded. “I understand she’s doing much better, but I’m sure it scared the hell out of him at the time.”

“It did,” Lydia agreed. She didn’t bother to add that she had no idea how things had gone the rest of the night since she was shown the door early on.

She was shocked when Mark pointed at a seating area in the corner and motioned her toward it. Curiosity had her taking a seat on the comfortable chair and looking at Mark expectedly. Mark sat across from her and crossed his legs before saying, “I’ve known Jake for a while now. And I’m just going to admit that I was rather taken aback when I heard that he’d gotten married in Vegas.”

Giggling despite herself, Lydia said, “I think we all felt that way, including Jake and me. It wasn’t exactly a normal evening in my life either.”

“No, I don’t imagine so.” Mark chuckled. “I think what’s been even more interesting, though, is how he’s settled down since his marriage.”

“Was he some kind of party animal before?” Lydia joked, only half kidding. She’d known that he probably wasn’t short on women vying for his affections, but was there more that she wasn’t aware of?

“I actually wasn’t talking about his personal life,” Mark interjected quickly. The look on his face told her that he didn’t even want to go near that minefield. “I’m not sure if you’re aware of it, but both Jake and I did a lot of traveling for The DeSanto Group until recent months. I began to slow down on that when I met Crystal, and Jake gladly stepped up and took over my share. Even though I know it was hard for him with a daughter, he still did it without complaint. He and I are similar in that we’d rather do something ourselves to make sure it’s taken care of than to rely on others. Hence, why we traveled far more than should have been necessary.”

Confused, Lydia said, “But we’ve been married for going on three months now, and other than day trips, he hasn’t been anywhere.”

“That’s right,” Mark agreed. “I promoted my cousin and assistant, Denny, and he’s been handling the long-distance travel for us—a move that would have bothered Jake greatly at one time. But after his marriage, he fully supported and encouraged me in the decision.”

Then the reason behind Jake’s agreement hit Lydia and she leaned forward to explain it to Mark. “Casey’s mother had been making things hard for Jake, so I’m sure he wanted to be in town more often to avoid additional problems going forward.”

Mark drummed a finger on his knee as if debating something before finally saying, “I know about the issues with Chris. He loves his daughter, but he also wanted to come home to you every day. He’s in love with you, or he wouldn’t have given up something that he enjoys so much. There are very few things in this world that will slow down and change men such as us and that’s the main one. If not for Crystal, I’d still be circling the globe, so trust me, I recognize the same affliction in someone else.”

Lydia gaped at him in astonishment. “I—that can’t be right. He doesn’t—”

Rather than argue or attempt to reinforce his theory, Mark got to his feet and looked down at her one last time, saying simply, “He does.” And with that, he walked off toward the elevators and left Lydia reeling. Having a discussion about her love life with Mark DeSanto was one of the strangest moments of her life. Why had he told her all of that? She’d professed her love for Jake last night, and he’d acted as if he wanted to bolt. That wasn’t the reaction of a man in love. Whatever Jake’s reasons for changing his routine at work, they couldn’t have much to do with her.

Mark might know business, but she was certain he wasn’t privy to the personal feelings of his employees. No, unfortunately Lydia knew much more about Jake’s private life than Mark did these days—and she would soon need to decide if she was willing to settle for a life with affection, but no love.

*   *   *

Jacob’s parents made it to the hospital before Chris. They had barely been speaking to him over his Vegas wedding, but when they’d found out that their granddaughter was in the hospital, all of that had been pushed to the side. His mother buzzed into the room, and as usual, she looked impossibly young for her age. “How’s my baby?” she asked as she walked straight to Casey and smothered her with noisy kisses.

“I’m doing pretty good, Mom.” Jacob smirked.

His father walked in a few steps behind and rolled his eyes. “Son, none of us exist when the bug over there is in the room.”

Jacob laughed, acknowledging the truth of his father’s words. As the one and only grandchild, Casey held center court in his parents’ attention anytime she was around. Getting to his feet, he did the manly hug with his father and then crossed to his mother. She waggled a finger in his face saying, “I’m still mad at you.” He heard his father chuckling behind him as she continued to scold him. “My firstborn gets married and we’re not invited? I have a daughter-in-law I’ve never even met.” Looking suddenly skeptical, she asked, “Are you sure you actually have a wife? This isn’t some acting-out phase, is it?” Putting a hand on the side of his face, she studied him. “Have you been feeling okay? I’ve never heard you mention dating anyone, much less a woman named Lydia.”

As if the name finally penetrated the cartoon-induced fog she was in, Casey squealed, “Lydie! She my friend, Grandma. She cuts the crust off my sandwich and we pets the fishes together. Mama called her a ramp, but I still ain’t seen no skates yet,” Casey added in the innocent way that only a child can.

His mother looked from Casey to him before muttering under her breath. “Well, I guess she does exist since my granddaughter seems to know her.” Clasping her hands together and giving him a look that never failed to freeze him to his spot, she said, “Your father and I are staying overnight with you. I’ll make dinner and we’ll get to know your new wife. You don’t have a problem with that, do you?”

“Um, no, Mom,” he answered meekly. The timing wasn’t great, even though he didn’t want to tell his parents that. He needed to be alone with Lydia to discuss everything that had occurred the previous evening. It didn’t look as if that was going to happen now. He’d call her later to warn her so that she didn’t feel as if she was walking into an ambush. One thing was certain, though, if she stayed with him after the ass he’d made of himself in the last twenty-four hours, coupled with a surprise visit from the in-laws, then he’d damn sure know she loved him just as much as he loved her.