Fourteen

Jay’s mother hugged her daughter tightly as she eyed Bridgett over Charlie’s shoulder. “I had no idea you were back in the States, sweetheart.”

Charlie scoffed at her mother. “Right. Jay called you, I know.”

“Actually, I wouldn’t have known Jay was in town had it not been for some gossip blogger,” the woman said.

“Oh come on,” Charlie said so sharply it made Bridgett cringe. “You don’t read anything unless it’s a journal or a textbook.”

The woman’s only reaction to her daughter’s harsh accusation was a slight downturn in the corners of her mouth. “Actually, the only way to know if my children are alive is by Twitter and tabloid-stalking them.”

A touch of guilt flashed in Charlie’s eyes before she hid it behind her usual veil of disdain. “What are you doing here, Mother?”

“I came to speak with your brother, but now I can visit with both my children at the same time. It’s been nearly a year since we’ve all been together.” She glanced over at Bridgett. “Charlotte, where are your manners? You haven’t introduced me to your friend.”

Charlie rolled her eyes. “If you’re reading the gossip blogs, then you know who she is. Dr. Melanie Davis, this is Bridgett Janik, Jay’s lawyer.” Charlie formed little air quotes with her fingers when she said the last word.

Melanie Davis’s gaze was shrewd when it landed on Bridgett. “Of course she is.” Jay’s mother extended her hand. “I’ve been waiting a long time to meet you, Bridgett.”

Bridgett swallowed roughly as she tried not to flinch under the older woman’s gaze. So he’d told his mother. Somehow the thought surprised her. The cold way in which he’d abandoned her and their baby didn’t mesh with a man who would tell his mother about what was, to him, essentially a summer fling.

Bridgett took her hand, refusing to cower under the woman’s gaze. She had nothing to apologize for. It was this woman’s son who had perpetrated the wrongdoing.

Charlie stared at them both quizzically. “Long time? I thought you guys just started dating?”

Jay’s mother arched an eyebrow but fortunately kept her thoughts to herself.

“We’re not dating.” Technically that was the truth. “My firm is representing his team in a class action lawsuit.” Again, technically true.

His sister laughed. “You really do have a courtroom face, Bridgett.”

Melanie didn’t say a word. She just continued to level a hard glare at Bridgett.

“If you’ll excuse me,” Bridgett said as she gathered her dress and shopping bag. “I’m just going to put these things away and check in with work. I’ll give you two some privacy to catch up.”

Charlie shot her a desperate look. “Why don’t I ask Josie to get us some tapas and a cool drink by the pool? After all, my mother came all this way to see you.”

Bridgett detected a little pain behind Charlie’s smart aleck attitude. She also saw the panic in Jay’s sister’s eyes. From the looks of it, Melanie Davis was unaware of her daughter’s condition. Still, none of this was Bridgett’s problem. She’d agreed to one weekend; that was all. The less she became involved with Jay’s family, the easier it would be to walk away.

“I’m sorry, but I really need to respond to some e-mails before it gets too late on the East Coast.” Her statement wasn’t actually a lie. Gwen had been texting her the past twenty minutes and Bridgett really did want to find out how things went when Skip was presented with the separation papers today. “It was very nice to meet you, ma’am.”

Charlie huffed in annoyance as Bridgett dashed up the stairs. She was glad that she’d asked Josie for another room earlier in the day. Especially if Jay’s mother was staying for any length of time. Jay would, no doubt, be furious. But Bridgett needed some space to process the past twenty-four hours—heck, the past forty-eight hours—without his sexy presence intimidating her and clouding her normally good judgment.

Gwen answered on the second ring. “He didn’t even deny it,” she cried. “The bastard even seemed to be relieved to have gotten caught with his pants down around his ankles.”

Bridgett sighed. Sadly, that was the reaction she pretty much expected out of Skip. “I know it’s painful, but it would have been worse if he tried to fight you on this, believe me.”

“He’s already gone.” Gwen gulped into the phone. “He didn’t even stick around long enough to break it to the kids with me.”

“I’m sorry, honey,” Bridgett said. And she truly was. Skip was a jerk of epic proportions who didn’t deserve to have children. “That had to be difficult.”

Her sister sniffed. “Mom and Dad were here with me. They were lovely. Ashley and Mark brought the boys over and Dad just took the kids to Friendly’s for ice cream. Apparently, everything will be much better after a cone sundae.”

Bridgett smiled to herself. Despite the fact that he was a dentist, Bridgett’s father’s go-to sympathy ploy always centered around ice cream. “I wish it were that easy for grown-ups, but the kids will be fine, Gwen. You’re a good mom. That’s not going to change.”

“Well, I’m going to be a working mom now. Dad says he has a need for an assistant in his office and I’m going to take him up on that temporarily. At least until I can get my teaching certificate.”

Gwen had majored in education, but she’d never pursued that career path. “That’s wonderful. I’m so glad you’ve got a plan.”

“Actually, it was Adam’s idea.”

“Adam?”

“The lawyer you sent.”

“Oh, right.” Bridgett made a mental note to check the divorce lawyer’s relationship status when she got back to the office. The last thing she needed was her sister falling for the first male who paid attention to her—especially one who was getting paid to do so.

She spoke briefly to her mother, who assured her that Gwen was holding up well. When Sybil Janik began to ask pointed questions about Jay, Bridgett quickly ended the call, using the same excuse she’d given to Jay’s sister and mother: work. After an hour on the phone with Dan, she learned that none of the cheerleaders were unhappy working for the Blaze. So far he’d interviewed fifty current and former Sparks, and none indicated a desire to join in on the class action suit.

“I’ll keep you posted if I hear anything else.” There was a hint of bitterness in Dan’s voice. “I may not be traveling with the team, but I’m pulling my weight here.”

“Don’t believe everything you read, Dan,” Bridgett cautioned him.

Dan gave a little huff. “Sure. Like I said, I’ll let you know if something else comes up.”

Bridgett hung up and fielded a few terse e-mails from Stuart. By the time she’d finished, her head was throbbing and her stomach was rumbling. But the thought of confronting Jay’s mother and sister made her queasy. Maybe she could talk Josie into letting her fix a cup of tea and a sandwich in the kitchen. She’d made it halfway across the room when the door swung open. A very weary-looking Jay stood at the threshold, still dressed in his Calvin Klein suit, his tie loose and his collar unbuttoned.

He pushed into the room, a look of dissatisfaction on his face. “Did you get lost?”

Bridgett stood her ground. “No. It’s a big house. I didn’t see any reason we needed to share when this room will do just fine for me.”

“Would you like me to demonstrate the most pressing reason why we need to share my bed?”

She kept her eyes away from his sexy mouth. “That won’t be necessary.”

Jay loosened his tie even further before he dropped down on the bed, laying his head on the pillow and crossing his shiny wingtips at the ankles.

“Make yourself comfortable,” Bridgett said sarcastically. “I’m headed to the kitchen for a snack.”

He closed his eyes and his face relaxed. “You don’t want to go down there. My mother and sister are going at it.”

“And you’re hiding up here?”

Jay cracked an eyelid. “That’s definitely the pot calling the kettle black.”

“Shouldn’t you be down there refereeing?”

“Hell, no. If I show up, they’ll have someone to blame for everything.”

Bridgett sat on the edge of the bed. “Your mother doesn’t know about your sister’s baby.”

His sigh sounded beleaguered to her ears. “No. For some reason Charlie feels compelled to keep it a secret even from our mother. Some sort of estrogen power struggle, I suppose.”

“But your mother knows about our baby?” Bridgett asked. Her stomach knotted up even though she suspected she knew what his answer would be.

Both his eyelids snapped open. “What did she say?”

“She didn’t have to say anything.”

Jay swore as he pulled himself to his feet. “Don’t worry about my mother, Bridgett. She keeps to herself much of the time.”

“Yet she came here today because she wanted to meet me. Or rip my heart out. She’s not easy to read, your mother.”

“She isn’t very maternal. I doubt she’d go all mama bear on you.”

“Yet you told her about us. About me. She recognized my name from the blog.”

Jay pulled the tie from around his neck and shoved it in the pocket of his suit jacket. “She’s the only one I told, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

Bridgett knew that was a lie, but she was tired of rehashing old wounds. She was tired, period. Tired and hungry. “I’m going to find something to eat.”

“I’ve already arranged for dinner. A private dinner for just the two of us.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Your mother said she hasn’t seen the two of you together for nearly a year. I’m perfectly capable of feeding myself. Go be with your family.” She was angry now. Angry at all the emotions pulling at her when she was around Jay. Bridgett just wanted some time alone to think. The little snippets she’d picked up from his sister and mother today were confusing and contradictory to the image of Jay she’d held in her mind all these years. Had his heart been broken? It wasn’t possible. Not when he hadn’t cared enough to come back to Italy and help her sort out a future.

“Bridgett,” he said calmly, making her resent his constant steady composure when she felt like her emotions had been caught up in a cyclone. “My mother and sister need this time alone together. I have no idea how to help their relationship except to provide a neutral territory for them to work things out.”

This was the Jay she’d fallen in love with all those years ago. The kind and considerate man who put his family first. Except he hadn’t put her first when she needed him the most. Tears burned the backs of her eyes. She didn’t want to give him her heart again, but she suddenly realized that he might not have ever given it back to her that first time.

Jay walked across the room toward her.

“Don’t,” she said. “I don’t like you. And I don’t want to like you.”

He wrapped his arms around her and she, stupid woman that she was, let him. “I told you, this isn’t about liking one another, much less loving one another,” he murmured against the top of her head. “But I will always treat you with the respect you deserve, Bridgett, in public and in private. We can make this work.” His hand slid up and down her back, and Bridgett suddenly couldn’t fight it anymore. She pushed her hands beneath his suit jacket and wrapped them around his broad back. They stood there, embracing each other for a few moments, both content to absorb the silence and the warmth of each other’s bodies until Bridgett’s stomach rumbled loudly.

“That would be the dinner bell,” he joked as he stepped back and took her hand. “I promised you a tour of the vineyard. Tonight we start with dinner in the wine cellar.”

•   •   •

Jay breathed a sigh of relief when Bridgett allowed him to guide her out of the guest room, down the stairs, and out across the lawn to the winery. Twilight had just settled over the vineyard, and Jay was grateful that his mother and sister had seemingly established some sort of peace accord that would allow them to coexist in one place for the weekend. To say that he’d been surprised that his mother would waylay him at his home was an understatement. He hadn’t considered she’d remember anything about Bridgett; he barely remembered the conversation he’d had with his mother himself. Everything about those weeks had been so raw and painful that Jay had blocked the time period out of his memory. It seemed he was destined to relive those days again, though.

He opened the iron gate and gestured for her to precede him through. “There won’t be as many spiders as there were in the DiSantis wine cellar,” he teased in hopes of lightening the mood.

Bridgett’s eyes went wide. “There better not be any spiders.”

“I’ll protect you,” he said, closing the gate behind them. The lights were operated by motion detectors, and each step they took illuminated the stone path in front of them. He directed her to the worn steps leading a half flight down into the cool, stone cellar. Josie had lit the candles in the sconces on the two walls beside the round table, giving the room a soft glow. The table was set for two with food stored in covered dishes on the row of hot plates on the counter.

Jay watched as Bridgett slowly circled the room, taking in the curved stone ceiling, the leather sofa, and the racks of wine. She walked over to the wall to peer more closely at a painting he’d bought in Wyoming. It featured a peaceful scene of buffalo grazing in front of Grand Teton Mountain. With a slight smile and a shake of her head, she fingered the flat-screen TV mounted to the other wall.

“Wow, all you need is a smoking jacket and this would be the perfect man cave,” she said.

“The humidor is in the corner—help yourself,” Jay replied as he uncorked a bottle of cabernet sauvignon and poured them both a glass.

“I can’t stand those things when Grandpa Gus smokes them. I doubt I’d enjoy smoking one myself.” She took the glass from him and sipped the wine. “It’s delicious. Amazing, in fact. This whole place is amazing, Jay. I don’t know how you can stand to live in Baltimore for even part of the year.”

He took a sip of his own wine so as not to tell her that he hated being at the vineyard by himself. The winery had been a part of his dream—a dream he’d retooled that long-ago summer to include Bridgett—and he was proud that he’d accomplished it, but he felt empty enjoying the vineyard on his own. Jay didn’t dare tell Bridgett that, though. He wouldn’t give her that much power over his heart again. Instead he redirected her attention. “Let’s have some of Josie’s amazing beef Wellington.”

Bridgett sat in the chair he’d pulled out for her and Jay spooned their dinner onto the warm plates. They ate in comfortable silence for a few minutes, both savoring the hearty meal his housekeeper had prepared.

“So how was shopping with my sister?” he asked.

“Enlightening,” Bridgett answered, a surprised smile curving her lips.

Jay reached for his wine. “She didn’t by chance enlighten you as to who the father of her baby is, did she?”

Bridgett choked briefly before swallowing. “Why would she tell me something like that?”

“She wouldn’t. It was just a shot in the dark.” Except her mannerisms were telling him it might not have been.

“Hmm,” was all Bridgett said as she buttered her roll.

Jay studied her as he took a sip of his wine. She had that evasive lawyerly look about her. Not only that, but she hadn’t said that Charlie didn’t confide in her. Damn. It would be just like his maniacal sister to tell Bridgett.

He swore viciously. “She did tell you, didn’t she?”

Bridgett remained silent, her face an impassive mask.

“Damn it, Bridgett, you need to tell me.”

“I don’t ‘need’ to tell you anything.”

Jay threw down his napkin. “Suppose it’s some deadbeat who’s only after her money?” He pushed out of his chair and began pacing around the wine cellar, the candles flickering as he stalked past. “She thinks she’s mature enough to handle having a kid, but she’s only twenty-one. Charlie acts first and thinks about the consequences later. I need to take care of this before it gets out of hand.”

“You don’t have to worry about the baby’s father,” Bridgett said quietly.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means I’ve agreed to protect her legally on that issue.”

Her words stopped him in his tracks. “Why would you do that?”

“Because your sister asked me to.” Bridgett stood, tossing down her own napkin. Tears were shining in her eyes when she stood. “Believe me, I didn’t want to get involved. But I thought—I thought—oh never mind what I thought! Just drop the issue about the baby’s father and try to support her pregnancy. It’s the least you can do.”

Jay grew angrier at her implication that he hadn’t supported Bridgett’s own pregnancy. He couldn’t have very well supported her when he knew nothing about their baby. “Don’t make this about us,” he argued.

“There is no ‘us,’” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Like hell there isn’t,” Jay growled as he reached for her. He didn’t want another innocent hug like they’d shared earlier up at the house. Jay wanted more. He wanted to possess her, to have Bridgett be his and only his. She was wrong. They were most definitely an “us” and he wasn’t going to let her go until he proved that to her.

“Jay,” she gasped as he pulled her into his chest. Her hand landed on his heart and the warmth of her palm through his shirt stopped him. His eyes locked with her damp ones. “A relationship based solely on sex isn’t going to sustain us as a couple. Not in the long run.”

An aching began in the area of his chest, but he ignored it. He wouldn’t give her more, yet he couldn’t let her go. “Then let’s see how far we can go with it,” he said before taking her mouth in a searing kiss. She sighed against his lips, her body arching around his in surrender. Jay wasted no time, parting her lips with his own and delving inside her warm mouth. She tasted like rich cabernet grapes straight from the vineyard. His vineyard. His woman.

Bridgett’s hands trailed up his chest to wrap around his neck. She made a little mewling sound at the back of her throat and he was instantly, painfully hard. He backed her toward the leather sofa as he shrugged out of his jacket. Jay eased her onto her back before covering her with his own body, while her efficient fingers undid the buttons on his shirt. Jay feasted on her mouth and she frantically tugged at his T-shirt, finally tangling her hands in the hair on his chest.

He reluctantly left her mouth to savor the delicate skin on her neck. When her finger flicked at his nipple he returned the favor, taking her earlobe between his teeth. Her hips arched toward his in response.

“I’m going to show you how well this can work,” he breathed into her ear.

Her lips grazed his cheek. “I’m not denying this isn’t good, Jay. I just don’t think it’s good for us.”

“Bridgett, please turn off your argumentative legal mind and let me do this my way.”

“Are you going to stop talking and hurry up, then?”

Jay kissed her again, ruthless and demanding. She responded with another thrust of her hips and a sexy moan that nearly sent him over the edge. He reached for the tiny pearl buttons on her sweater, but opening them took too much effort so he shoved his hands beneath the fabric, where he could trace his fingers along the silky skin on her flat belly. Bridgett wrapped a leg around his hips just as his fingers made contact with her lacy bra. He needed to be inside her. Now. He’d show her how well this could work, both now and forever.

“Boss?”

Bridgett stiffened beneath him at the sound of Linc’s voice outside the cellar.

“Whoa! Um, sorry, boss.” His voice came from within the room, which meant his assistant was likely getting an eyeful. Damn it, he was going to fire the kid. Bridgett shoved at Jay but he didn’t dare move before adjusting her sweater.

“Um, boss. Sir. Mr. McManus. Sir,” Linc stammered. Fortunately, it sounded like he’d retreated to outside the cellar door again. “Donovan says he has to speak with you right away. It’s urgent. Sir.”

Bridgett swatted at his chest and Jay rolled off, allowing her to climb off the sofa. Jay remained where he was, painfully frustrated now.

“Boss?” Linc called. “What should I tell him?”

Jay swore as he watched Bridgett right her clothes, her actions doing nothing to calm his body down. “I’ll call him from here. Please make sure Ms. Janik gets back to the house safely.”

She arched an eyebrow at Jay before picking up his suit jacket and handing it to him. “Am I under house arrest?”

If that was the only way to keep her, Jay might consider it, but he was pretty sure he was winning the battle for her acquiescence. He wrapped his fingers around her wrist, feeling her pulse ratchet up beneath his thumb. “It’s dark out there. I just want to make sure you’re safe.”

Bridgett leaned down and kissed the corner of his mouth. “If Don is calling about the case, be sure you share whatever he says with your lawyer.”

Jay grinned. “My goal is to share everything with my lawyer.”

She stood up and gently tugged her arm free. “No, Jay. The offer you’ve made excludes you from sharing everything.” Her face was melancholy as she turned and left the cellar. Jay listened to Bridgett’s retreating footsteps as Linc followed behind her, mumbling an apology. He slammed his head back against the leather sofa. While he unleashed a swarm of obscenities in which he pretended to fire everyone in his employ, Jay punched up Donovan Carter’s number on his phone. Whatever the Blaze chief of security wanted, it had better be important.