“Nice work, Jack,” Mayor Wright said, glancing around the hallways.

Jack exhaled. “Thanks. I’m surprised to see you here,” he said, unwilling to engage in small talk or keep up appearances. Ever since he’d emailed Wright that he wouldn’t attend the rally—which also meant he wouldn’t publicly endorse the man—he hadn’t heard back from the man.

“Your wife invited me. How could I pass it up? You know, Jack, I know you’ve always kept yourself distant from partisanship, but how about you scratch my back now I’ve scratched yours?” The mayor leaned in. “I meant what I wrote in the email. I’d love you and your wife’s support. Your Latina beauty would bode well with my much needed voter base.”

“Hear me loud and clear… I am not doing any of it.” That’s why he stayed away from politics. Didn’t want to owe favors to a dirty rat like this bastard. “And you never scratched my back.”

“Potato, potawto. Maybe I didn’t do it directly, but c’mon. I expedited the permit because she’s your wife. Why can’t you meet me halfway?”

“Is that… true?” Jack heard a female voice behind him.

“I’ll get something to eat,” the mayor said, the coward, and scurried away.

Jack spun on his heels, his blood pounding in his temples. When his eyes met Lola’s, his veins chilled. His gut curled, like two, make it three MMA champions punched him simultaneously.

Lola’s facial features hardened into a tight mask as she clearly was making an effort not to cry. Sadness gleamed in her eyes, growing darker and bigger. She watched him silently for a beat, hands perched at her waist. “Tell me.”

Jack shoved his hand into his hair. He couldn’t lie to her. But he would have given anything to wipe that deceptive expression from her. Damn. The damage was done now. “Listen, the mayor is stupid. He’s thinking of his own agenda—

“And you asked him to give me the permit.”

“Not really. He was going to say no, but when he heard you were my wife he decided to help you out. Lola, this doesn’t take away from your plan. Your idea worked out. Look at this,” he said, swinging his hand around. “Don’t let something small get in our way. I just asked you to marry me. We’ll be together, the three of us.”

Her shoulders dropped a notch, and she had a vacant look on her face. He popped his knuckles. When had been the last time life and vibrancy had deserted her? When we broke up.

At last, as if something inside her snapped, she shook her head and said in a trembling tone, “Say that again.”

A pulse throbbed in his throat. Holy fuck. He blurted out about the baby. Ideally, he would have waited to tell her he knew. “You, me, and the baby,” he said firmly, determined.

The red dress she wore sparkled as she shifted her weight from one foot to another. “How did you know?” She wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Wait. That’s why you asked to marry me, isn’t it? Because I’m pregnant.”

“No. Hold on. That isn’t true.”

A guest looking for the restroom passed by them, and Jack led her to the kitchen. Consuelo waved, and the waiters she’d hired to cater for the night arranged the food on elegant trays. Jack opened the door to the pantry and they entered. He closed it behind him. Drawing attention to their personal drama was the last thing she needed tonight and he knew that.

“How can I believe you, Jack? Within minutes, I find out the people dearest to me have lied one way or another. And I don’t care if it was meant to protect me. It hurts.”

He looked down. “I’m sorry.”

“I…would like for you to move out of the ranch.”

He raised his face to see her. A bob made its way down her soft throat. A shock of frustration electrified him. He curled his fingers into a fist and dug his index finger into his palm until it stung. “You can’t mean that.”

She lifted her chin, and her eyes darkened, making him want to hold her. She suffered, and it was his fault. He made a move toward her but she held up her hand to stop him.

“We had a deal—you’d move out once I proved to you I could run a bed and breakfast,” she said. “Well, I think I’ve given you enough proof.”

“You can’t do that. Lola, we’re having a baby,” he said, and tried to touch her shoulder to squeeze it, console her, but she jerked away and stepped back until a couple of cans from the food shelf fell to the floor.

“Exactly. I don’t want this child to resent us down the line. Trust me, I’ve had my share of resentment.”

“It’ll be different with us,” he said. He undid the top button of his shirt. “It’ll be different this time.”

She shook her head. “How? We tried to make it once before without a child, and we failed. Miserably. Do you know what kind of stress a newborn baby brings into a relationship?”

He gave her a slow nod. How could he convince that stubborn woman arguing with him that he wanted to be there for those bad moments too? “We’ve changed, Lola. Damn it.”

“You have? How? By not telling me you knew I was pregnant? By trying to trap me into a loveless marriage? How’s that a change?”

Was she right? They couldn’t discuss the future of their child without hurt feelings? “I could say the same thing. You never told me about the baby. You assumed that was your problem alone and didn’t share it with me, even though we were finally getting along.”

She lifted her chin. Resentment flickered in her eyes, her facial expression closing like heavy doors of a dungeon. “I needed to figure things out.”

“Exactly. Why couldn’t we do it together?” he asked, shoving his hand into his hair, desperate to find some common sense. “I thought these past months brought us closer, but I was wrong. You don’t care for me. You don’t care for my opinions. All you’re probably thinking about is how this pregnancy will inconvenience you, and the rest be damned,” he finished, accusation dripping from his voice.

She stepped back, her eyes glossy. Her lips trembled, hinting his words hurt her beyond measure. His gut clenched. Shit. What she’d done, what she’d said hurt him too. “Right now I just want you out of my life. Leave, Jack,” she said, the vein on her neck pulsing.

Lola swallowed. She blinked back the tears with all her strength. Daddy had lied to her. Her mother had lied to her. Hell, even Jack lied too. Who cared why he’d done it? It didn’t change the fact she didn’t get to where she was on her own.

Even I lied, when I omitted the pregnancy from Jack. I’m a failure. Glancing down, she glided her hand over her stomach. What kind of role model would she be? Jack’s painful words rang inside her like the bell of an old church. All you think about is how this pregnancy will inconvenience you, and the rest be damned.

She sniffed. Earlier that night, her world had collided not once, but twice. Her guests weren’t at fault, so she returned to the common areas and continued to mingle and talk until the last one left. Now the clock read well past midnight, and there’d been no sign of Jack after she told him to go. At last he’d followed her lead, though it didn’t make her feel the least bit victorious.

A knock on her door spiked her pulse.

She straightened her shoulders. What she really wanted to do was to curl into a fetal position and cover herself with a blanket. What else did she and Jack have to talk about now? The baby, of course. She knew he would be the best dad in the world, but she couldn’t marry him if he truly didn’t love her. When she’d asked him earlier, he not once mentioned his love for her. At best he’d said they finally got along.

Did she really need to be in another relationship filled with resentment? Margo always treated Daddy in a way that barely hid her own pain. And now she knew why. Then her first attempt at marriage had gone terribly wrong.

“Bunny, let me in. It’s me,” her mother said.

Lola shook her head as if her mother could hear her. Pepper whimpered, and went to the door, tail wagging. He scratched the wood and stood on his two paws.

Fine. She scooted out of the bed, and taking a breath deeper than the Pacific Ocean, she got to her feet and reached for the door. Before she opened it, she stared at the door handle for an instant. Hesitation had her pulling her hand back, unsure and anxious about the consequences of letting her mother in.

“I won’t leave until I talk to you.”

She opened the door. Her mother looked… different. Her eyes were reddish, and the makeup around her eyes, slightly smeared. Even though it was late, she still had on the same dress as earlier. “What?”

“I need you to hear me out,” Margo said, storming into the room even though she hadn’t been invited to join her.

Shrugging, Lola closed the door. Sadness had smothered most of her energy. Or maybe that was just the pregnancy part.

“I’m sorry for everything,” her mother said.

Lola swallowed hard. Words failed her. Never had she heard Margo admit guilt so quickly—and genuinely. Usually it came with strings or a backhanded compliment. Lola bit her lower lip. Her mother’s confession didn’t redeem her mistake.

“I saw Jack go before the party ended. Did you two fight?” Margo fiddled with her necklace.

Lola plopped on the bed. “Yes.”

Margo sat next to her. “Don’t be like me, dear. You love him, right?”

Why deny the obvious? Lola cleared her throat. “Yes.”

“Then don’t let pride get in the way. Fight for him, and fight for love.”

Sighing, Lola massaged her temple and wished she found a solution that didn’t involve a loveless marriage. “It’s complicated. I’m pregnant. Due to our past, I don’t want him to be with me just because of the baby.”

“You really think he’d stay just because of the baby?”

Lola surged to her feet, restless. “Why not? He’s done it before. He was heartbroken when I had a miscarriage two years ago. Tonight, he didn’t tell me he loved me. Not even when he asked me to marry him. Or I guess to stay married.”

Margo fixed her hair, then gave out a sarcastic laugh. “Do you really think a man like Jack would let you transform this place if he didn’t love you? Are you blind?”

“I bugged him a lot so he’d let me,” Lola said, deciding not to mention the deal she’d struck with Jack. Giving her mother more information wouldn’t change things. Right? A cold chill slid down her spine.

Margo shot her a look of amusement. “Honey… Jack isn’t a man to let himself be bugged unless he wants to.” She squared her shoulders, and leaned forward. Her brows furrowed. “Listen. I was in the wrong with your father. It may not seem like it from whatever snippets you have of our marriage, but I loved him. Instead of letting myself get lost in emotions, I was scared. I used every excuse as a shield and a condition. And that drove me away from him.”

“I… I’m sorry,” Lola said, even though the reason why was different than what her mother could interpret. The words resonated through her like her body was the inside of a drum.

I loved him. I was scared. Used every excuse as a shield and a condition. Could it be possible she managed to make the same mistakes as Margo?

“No. I am. I’m too old not to realize I sabotaged myself and my marriage. And you are too young to follow in those shallow footsteps.” She gave Lola a sad smile. “Besides, you’re far smarter.”

Lola pondered. She had lost Jack before. Was she going to lose him again? And what would be the price of going to him and revealing how she really felt about him?