The Forget-Me-Not Friends

Harrison Kincaid—During his childhood Harrison and his sister, Nessa, spent all of July and August on Summer Island with their parents. In his thirties Harrison married Simone and became the CEO of his family-owned communications business based out of Seattle.

Aidan Wythe—Raised by his mother in Seattle, Aidan has been Harrison’s best friend for as long as he can remember. They went to Yale together and Aidan is Harrison’s right-hand man at Kincaid Communications.

Emerson Cotley—A local on Summer Island, Emerson took over the family landscaping business after his parents were killed in a car accident.

Jennifer March—Her family owns the Lavender Farm Bed and Breakfast on Summer Island. She and Simone were best friends.

Gabe Brooke—Gabe owns a real estate business on Summer Island, as well as the local newspaper. He married Harrison’s sister, Nessa, after Harrison married Simone.

Simone DeRosier—A renowned jazz singer and pianist, Simone started spending her holidays with her father on Summer Island when she was fourteen years old. She coined the phrase “Forget-Me-Not Friend” in her first Grammy Award-winning hit.

Dear Reader,

In this book I’m taking you back to Summer Island, a locale I introduced this June in the Signature Select Saga novel, You Made Me Love You.

I first dreamed of Summer Island when my family and I spent a holiday with my sister’s family on Saltspring Island. We had a grand time lazing on the ocean shore, hiking in the rolling hills and kayaking on the becalmed sea. One of the highlights for my city-slicker daughters was setting traps for crabs with my brother-in-law Gord. I couldn’t believe it when those picky little children actually ate them, too!

As we explored the Gulf Coast island, I knew I had to write a book about this place one day. No, not just a book, a three-book series. I wasn’t sure what the stories would be about, but I started with a picture in my head….

Five friends sitting around a bonfire on the beach late at night. They’re roasting marshmallows and drinking and kidding around with the ease of kids who’ve known each other all their lives. Then someone new asks to join their group…and their futures are altered forever.

I hope you enjoy this story. The concluding book of this trilogy, Secrets Between Them, will be available in October from Harlequin Superromance. Be sure to watch for it.

If you would like to write or send e-mail, I would be delighted to hear from you through my Web site at www.cjcarmichael.com. Or send mail to the following Canadian address: #1754—246 Stewart Green, S.W., Calgary, Alberta, T3H 3C8, Canada.

Sincerely,

C.J. Carmichael

A Baby Between Them
C.J. Carmichael

www.millsandboon.co.uk

CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

PROLOGUE

Summer Island

AIDAN WYTHE DIDN’T make friends easily, so when the new girl suddenly appeared on the beach in the moonlight, his instinct was to nod politely, and then turn away. His friends Harrison Kincaid and Gabe Brooke, however, reacted quite differently. Harrison scrambled to his feet. Gabe offered her a drink.

“That’s a good fire.” The girl moved closer to the bonfire, holding out a hand as if she were cold.

She was beautiful. No, more than that. Stunning was a better word.

“It’s even warmer over here.” Gabe patted the surface of the log he was sitting on in invitation.

The girl hesitated. “Are you sure I’m not interrupting?”

“Yeah, actually, you are,” Aidan said. Something about her made him uneasy. Just because Harrison and Gabe were already drooling didn’t mean they should invite her to join them. The five of them had been having a great time without her. Aidan looked to Jennifer for support, but even she was frowning at his comment.

“Don’t mind him,” Jennifer said.

“Yeah,” Gabe added. “Aidan was bit by a rabid dog when he was a kid. He’s never been the same.”

Aidan told Gabe what to do with himself. But everyone else laughed. And the new girl sat down.

“My dad and I are here for the summer. My name’s Simone. Simone DeRosier.”

Gabe and Harrison both repeated her name as if to make sure they would never forget it. What idiots. They were still gawking as if they’d never seen a pretty girl before.

“I’m Gabe Brooke. I live here on the island, and these are my friends.” Gabe went around the fire, pointing as he spoke each of their names: “Emerson and Jennifer are locals, too. Aidan and Harrison are from Seattle.”

“Hi, Simone. It’s good to meet you.” Harrison leaned closer and offered his hand.

Aidan cringed. God, Harrison. Shaking hands was what grown-ups did. Not sixteen-year-old guys who were just hanging out on the beach.

But Simone smiled as brightly as if Harrison was the coolest dude she’d ever met.

“It’s nice to meet you, too, Harrison.” She turned to girl beside him. “Is this your girlfriend?”

Jennifer laughed. “No, we’re just friends. We’re all friends.” She pushed her blond hair off her shoulders. “My parents own a bed-and-breakfast on the north end.”

“My folks have a landscaping business,” Emerson added. “We live on Oyster Bay, just a few miles from here.”

Finally Simone’s eyes settled on Aidan. “That leaves you, Aidan. Where do you stay when you’re on the island? Do you rent a place in town?”

He didn’t answer, so Harrison filled in. “He and his mom own the cottage across from our place. Aidan and I go to school together in Seattle. We’re planning to be roommates when we go to Yale.”

“Cool. Have you guys known each other long?”

“Basically all our lives,” Emerson said. “Our moms used to bring us to this beach when we were little kids.”

“How lucky for you.” Simone sounded genuinely envious. “Well, thanks, Aidan, for letting me barge in on the party like this.”

Why would she thank him, when he was probably the only one who didn’t want her here? He looked up from the fire and scowled. He didn’t care if she knew he didn’t like her. Harrison and Gabe were fools. Their tongues were going to be caked with sand if they didn’t shove them back into their mouths pretty soon.

Simone wrapped her arms around her knees and leaned forward. “So what do you like to do?”

“Volleyball. Swim. Hang out,” Jennifer said. “How about you?”

“I like those things, too.” She paused a moment. “Do any of you sing?”

“Around the campfire, you mean?” Aidan’s voice dripped with scorn. He’d known he wouldn’t like this girl. “Not since I was a Boy Scout, when I was ten.”

“But then you’re tone-deaf, Aidan.” Harrison offered the insult with the casual air of a lifelong friend. “My mother makes me and my sister, Nessa, take piano lessons. How about you, Simone? Do you sing?”

She nodded and faked a shy look. She didn’t fool Aidan, though. He knew she was dying for the chance to show off. Sure enough, less than a minute later, Gabe and Harrison had convinced her to sing for them.

She surprised Aidan by picking an old-fashioned jazz tune. And then she surprised them all by how impossibly wonderful she sounded.

When she stopped, Aidan couldn’t think of even one cutting thing to say. In fact, no one spoke at all for several seconds. And then, suddenly, everyone was gushing.

“You’re unbelievable….”

“Are you sure you’re not a professional…?”

“I’ve never heard anyone…”

Simone sat back on the log and soaked it all up. For a moment her eyes settled on his and he saw the self-satisfaction in them.

You witch, he thought. She was going to mess up everything this summer. He just knew it.

CHAPTER ONE

Summer Island, twenty-three years later

AIDAN WYTHE NOTICED the rental car parked in front of the house where he’d be staying for the next three weeks, but at first he didn’t think anything of it.

Twenty minutes ago he’d driven off the ferry, officially starting his first real vacation in several years. Now he pulled his convertible into the driveway, cut the engine and just sat for a moment.

Here he was, back in Canada, on Summer Island.

He closed his eyes and focused on the scent of the ocean and the feel of the gulf breeze in his hair. Memories, both good and bad, teased his mind like the wind. No matter how many times he returned as an adult, it was always his childhood that came back to him first.

Most of his recollections were of happy hours spent beachcombing, swimming and picnicking with his friends. The five of them had had their disagreements, but they were always minor and had been patched quickly and with little resentment.

All that had changed, however, the summer they turned sixteen—when Simone DeRosier joined their circle. It was that summer that innocence had been lost and the seeds of obsession and evil that would tear the group apart were planted.

Aidan rubbed his forehead, opened his eyes. Just thinking of the famous jazz singer—dead now, murdered by one of their own—stirred up his old resentments. He didn’t want to hang on to them, but still…

Everything had been so easy before Simone arrived on the scene. Unfortunately, Aidan had been the only one to see that she was trouble. He wasn’t sure what had tipped him off. Her uncommon beauty, a certain look in her eyes, the stunning power in her voice when she’d first sung for the five of them.

She’d instantly captivated Harrison, Gabe, Emerson and Jennifer, and for years after that she’d played them off against each other, all the while pretending that they were the best friends in the world.

She’d even immortalized their friendship with a song: “Forget Me Not, Old Friend” had been a big hit and had won her a Grammy. From that moment on, the press—and eventually even the five of them—had referred to themselves as the Forget-Me-Not gang.

Personally, Aidan hated the label.

Not that it mattered anymore. There was no gang left to speak of. Not with Simone and Emerson dead, and Harrison and Gabe not speaking to each other. Gabe hated Harrison because he was the one Simone had married. Harrison hated Gabe for seducing and marrying his baby sister, Nessa, then making her so miserable that she’d finally divorced him.

With friends like those, who needed enemies?

Aidan sighed, then slipped off his sunglasses and tossed them on the dash. From the driver’s seat of his Mustang convertible, he contemplated the gracious home that had belonged to the Kincaid family for three generations. Through decades of upheaval this house was the one thing that hadn’t really changed.

The old Victorian was a stalwart structure, built with its back to the sea, the broad front verandah providing an open welcome to family and guests alike. A Gothic-style second-story turret, where Simone had once composed her music, overlooked an ancient cedar forest that formed the heart of the island.

Much as Aidan wanted to remember the place as it had seemed to him in his childhood—warm, inviting, almost magical—he couldn’t help recalling that this was where Simone DeRosier had been murdered.

And now he was supposed to vacation here. To relax. Just because his office staff thought he was overstressed from too much work.

He jumped out of the convertible without opening the door, then went round to the back and removed his luggage from the trunk. He paused and glanced farther down the road to Pebble Beach. Wooden stairs led from a modest parking lot to a naturally protected cove. He remembered summer nights sitting by a bonfire on the beach, then later strolling along the boardwalk that led all the way back to town. He, Harrison, Emerson, Gabe and Jennifer had had a lot of fun in those pre-Simone days.

Aidan hefted an expansive duffel bag over his shoulder, then had another cursory glance at the rental car parked next to the driveway. Must be someone visiting the yoga studio across the road. He dug Harrison’s key out of his jeans pocket and headed for the front door.

Last time he’d been on the island—about a year ago— Harrison had been in residence. He’d been investigating the circumstances of Simone’s death, and then, along the way, he’d fallen in love with his real estate agent, Justine Melbourne. No one had been more surprised than Aidan when Harrison and Justine succeeded in proving Simone’s death had not been suicide, but murder.

Harrison could be fiercely tenacious when he wanted something. Like this stupid holiday idea. Harrison had all but packed Aidan’s bags and filled his car with gas, he’d been that anxious to get his friend out of the office in Seattle. Just because Aidan had called Harrison while he was sleeping with a great idea for a merger target.

“It’s three o’clock in the morning, Aidan. You need to get a life.”

But it had been a great idea….

Never mind, maybe he had been guilty of overworking this last little while. But he had to, didn’t he? Otherwise, if he weren’t careful, he’d be thinking about things that were better forgotten.

Aidan dropped his bag to the porch floor. The wooden boards looked freshly stained. The entire property was well-maintained. He glanced back at his car, wondering if he should put up the roof. But the clear sky held no hint of a summer storm.

What had brought him back to this place for his holiday? Sure Harrison had offered the use of his house, but money wasn’t an object—Aidan could have traveled anywhere in the world. It was almost as if he couldn’t stay away, as if the island had laid a claim on him, a claim that had to be settled.

Gloomy thoughts, man. You’re supposed to be on holiday, remember?

He inserted his key into the lock, then pushed the door open. Immediately, he was accosted by an acrid smell. A second later, a loud crash sounded from the back of the house where the kitchen was.

What the hell? Harrison had told him a cleaning crew would have the place stocked and ready for his arrival, but this couldn’t be them, could it?

And then it hit him. The driver of that rental car wasn’t at the yoga studio, after all.

RAE CORDELL HAD READ the instructions on the plastic wrapper that was now lying on the counter. It wasn’t that complicated. “Remove from packaging and place loaf on a cookie sheet in a prewarmed 325 degree oven. Bake for thirty to thirty-five minutes, until the bread is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped.”

Yes, it had all sounded very simple. But Rae knew that if anyone could screw up baking a loaf of oven-ready bread, it would be her.

She peeked in the oven, and the yeasty aroma that greeted her made her gag. Oh, God. She had to get to a washroom. Quick.

Just hours ago, she’d been craving a slice of thick bread, slathered in butter. Now, the scent of the baking dough made her ill.

Rae kneeled over the toilet, and when she was done, mopped off her face and then checked her reflection in the mirror above the sink.

What was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she do the things that seemed to come to other women so easily? Like cooking. And being pregnant.

Everyone knew morning sickness ended after the first trimester. Yet here she was, well into her eighth month. And the nausea still struck without warning and often at the most inopportune times. Like during Thursday afternoon staff meetings. And business dinners with important financiers. No wonder she’d been invited to take an expenses-paid vacation until the baby was born.

Oh, Harrison’s wife had been very sweet on the phone. Justine had said that since she and her husband were planning to spend August in Seattle, their summer home would be vacant. Why didn’t Rae take the opportunity and allow herself a well-deserved vacation?

Justine’s suggestion had been echoed by the executive assistant who worked under Rae at the Pittsburgh office of Kincaid Communications. The human relations director in Seattle had called for a “personal chat” and so had the VPs for Finance and Marketing. In fact, Rae had heard from almost everyone at the corporation except for the one person who really counted: her direct boss, acting CEO Aidan Wythe.

Rae placed her hands awkwardly over the huge mound of her abdomen. The man who got me in this predicament in the first place.

Her pregnancy had been common knowledge for at least the past three months—it wasn’t the sort of news one could hide forever—and she’d spent weeks dreading the prospect of hearing from him. But he hadn’t come to the Pittsburgh office in all that time. He hadn’t even called. Finally, it dawned on her that he didn’t intend to face up to the situation. Knowing men, Rae figured that he’d probably convinced himself someone else was the father.

Well, Rae had no interest in dissuading him of that notion. In fact, the more she reflected on her situation, the more she came to think that Aidan’s disinterest worked perfectly with her own plans.

This way, she didn’t need to consider anyone’s needs but hers and the baby’s.

The timer on the oven sounded again, and Rae was forced to head back to the kitchen. As soon as she stepped out of the bathroom, she knew something was wrong.

The bread was burning. She ran to the oven, slipped on oven mitts and opened the door. The top of the loaf was scorched black. As she pulled it out, her thumb pressed through a worn spot on the oven mitt.

Yikes! She dropped the pan and it clattered loudly against the granite-topped counter. It was in the ensuing silence that she heard the footsteps. Someone was in the house and heading her way.

Rae knew she’d locked the door after her morning walk. Was she about to be robbed? Raped? She reached for the hot pan, ready to hurl it if she had to. As she closed her gloved hands over her improvised weapon, a man stepped into the kitchen.

“Oh!” She stifled her scream at the moment of recognition. Damn it, this wasn’t possible, was it? Separated from her by a ten-foot, granite-topped island, Aidan Wythe looked almost as startled as Rae felt.

“Aidan?” She spoke the name as if his identity might be in doubt, but of course it wasn’t. Damn him, he looked good—even with windblown hair, and dressed in a casual T-shirt and jeans rather than his usual Armani suit and tie.

Oh, my Lord.

She dropped the pan to the countertop for the second time. Fighting an urge to run from the room, she gripped the counter for balance.

Why wasn’t he saying anything? What was he doing here? Rae swallowed, and drew in a long breath. The staccato pounding of her heart made her feel as if she’d just run up a long flight of stairs.

“This can’t be happening.” She closed her eyes, then opened them, hoping this apparition would disappear. Big surprise—it didn’t.

Aidan crossed his arms. Frowned. “What are you doing here?”

“Shouldn’t that be my line?” Must be the baby she was carrying, but she was having a hard time catching her breath. She leaned a little harder against the counter, trying not to wish that she looked slightly more presentable.

She was still flushed from her morning walk, and she hadn’t changed from the baggy T-shirt and shorts that she wore for exercise. Surely no one expected an extremely pregnant woman to look that good, anyway.

Not that it mattered. This was Aidan Wythe. The man she’d thought was so different…so sensitive, so deep. And he’d turned out to be the biggest jerk of all.

“Harrison told me his house was vacant for the month of August.” As Aidan spoke, his gaze raked over Rae, and she could almost hear him listing all the flaws he must be seeing. Messy hair that hadn’t been washed in days, no makeup, terrible clothes.

Whereas Aidan looked…absolutely delicious. More handsome than ever, not to mention calm and collected, even though—as Rae now understood—he hadn’t expected to see her here, either.

Well, that explained one mystery. She should have known he wouldn’t have been looking for her.

“Funny,” she said. “That’s exactly what Justine told me.”

Aidan blinked, surprise registering in his enigmatic, dark eyes. Finally, he broke the visual connection and crossed the room to the windows. The Pacific Ocean, deceptively calm on this late-summer day, dominated the view through all three picture windows that ran the length of the combined kitchen and dining area.

Rae stayed where she was, watching him push his hands into the pockets of his jeans, and trying not to admire the way the dark denim outlined slim hips, long legs, tight ass.

Ah, hell, it wasn’t fair. Aidan had never looked better. Shouldn’t men like him come marked in some way to warn innocent women of the potential danger? He hadn’t asked her how she was feeling, hadn’t even acknowledged the fact that she was pregnant. He really was a cad.

Now she glanced at the spot where he’d been standing earlier and saw a very large duffel bag. And suddenly the ramifications of the problem before them increased significantly.

“You came here for a vacation?”

“Yes.” He swung round to face her again. “How long are you planning to stay?”

Rae looked at him, incredulous. He had to be the most self-centered man on the planet. “Why, until the baby’s born, of course.”

Aidan’s hands dropped to his side. His face went blank. “Baby?”

Stepping out from behind the island, Rae rounded her hands over her large belly. Good grief, his face. It was almost as if…

“Oh, my God. Rae, why didn’t you tell me?”

CHAPTER TWO

“YOU DIDN’T KNOW?” Rae’s voice, usually so strong and confident, gave out in a squeak at the end of her question.

Aidan couldn’t find the words to answer her. He was in shock. Her belly was huge. Enormous. She looked as though she was ready to pop at any second. He tore his gaze from her middle and gave the rest of her a closer look. In contrast with her belly, her arms and legs seemed abnormally skinny. Once, she’d had curves in all the right places. Now, her curves were definitely in all the wrong places.

“Rae, when did this happen?”

She placed her hands, covered in quilted oven mitts, on her hips. “You know damn well when it happened. Eight months ago, in that stupid hotel room in Philadelphia where we were supposed to be preparing our presentation for the Triumph merger.”

He covered his face with one hand. Groaned. Eight months… Yes, that took them right back to the night he’d spent with her. He’d known then that he was making a mistake. But he’d had no idea just what a whopper it would turn out to be.

“Why haven’t I heard about this? You never called.”

Her gaze focused in on him like a laser beam. “You made it perfectly clear my calls weren’t welcome when you banished me to Pittsburgh.”

“Banished? That was a promotion, Rae.” Holding out his hand, he ticked off the reasons on his fingers. “You got more money, more responsibility, a step up the corporate ladder.”

Rae shook her head, releasing more strands of wild, dark hair from her loose ponytail. “Sure, Aidan. And you didn’t have to go to work every day and face the woman you’d made the mistake of sleeping with. Be honest and admit the truth. You sent me to Pittsburgh to get rid of me.”

Her words infuriated him and he had to struggle to reply calmly. “Not true.”

“If you weren’t trying to avoid me, then why did you stop making monthly visits to Pittsburgh once I was made divisional VP?”

“I trusted you to handle the job.”

“Oh, really? And the switch from the conference phone calls you used to make to divisional VPs to group e-mails—that must have been another example of your great trust? It wasn’t because you didn’t want to hear the sound of my voice?”

“You’re reading too much into all that. And forgetting how busy I’ve been, with Harrison out of the office so much….”

Since he’d married Justine, Harrison had started working eleven months of the year from here on Summer Island. It had fallen on Aidan, who’d been promoted and given a huge raise, to fill in the gaps.

“Right.” She looked at him scornfully. “You’ve been busy. You haven’t been avoiding face time with the employee you screwed. And when I say ‘screwed,’ of course I’m speaking literally and figuratively.”

Aidan paced to the far corner of the room. He needed space to think. He needed to be calm and rational. But every time he looked at Rae’s enormous belly he felt as if he was about to have a panic attack.

Focus on something else for a minute. In front of him, the Kincaid china cabinet was filled with French Provincial serving dishes, teapots, ornaments. He felt like smashing the lot of them.

So much for calm and rational.

He turned to face Rae again. “What were you expecting me to do? We shouldn’t have slept together. It was a mistake and we both should have known better.” He let out a huge sigh of exasperation. “Because of my position of authority, I recognize that I shoulder the majority of the blame.”

She blinked and her head jerked back a little, as if he’d slapped her.

What had he said wrong this time? Surely she couldn’t deny that what they’d done had been ill-advised, to say the very least.

“Look, we’re two ambitious people, who in a moment of weakness…” He paused, remembering that moment of weakness, and how truly incredible it had seemed at the time. That night he’d wanted her so badly that he hadn’t cared about consequences. About any consequences. For the first time in his life he’d been so carried away that he hadn’t used a condom.

He hadn’t even asked if she was protected. Which, clearly, she hadn’t been.

“Rae, even if you think I’m the biggest jerk in the world…”

“Sounds about right.”

He decided to ignore that. “I still deserved to be told you were pregnant.”

“Really? Why?”

Her answer stunned him. “Because I’m the father.”

“So what? You contributed the sperm. Big deal.” With her hands still covered in protective mitts, she picked up the pan and tipped the loaf of bread on it into the trash. “This smell is making me sick. Or maybe it’s you. I’m not sure.”

Fighting words, again. But throwing insults back and forth wasn’t accomplishing anything. Aidan tried to see her side of the situation. “You’ve been through a lot. Maybe you’ve got reason to be upset with me. But at least you could have told me. Given me a chance.”

“A chance to do what, Aidan? Marry me?” She took off the oven mitts. Tossed them to the counter, as if she were issuing some kind of challenge.

“Is that what you want?” he asked quietly.

“Jesus, Aidan!” she exploded again. “I don’t even like you anymore. Why would I want to marry you?”

Okay, that hurt. But why? Wasn’t this exactly the real reason he’d sent her away? So that their feelings for each other might cool to a point where they’d be able to continue their professional relationship without the risk of messy emotional entanglement?

“As the father, I have responsibilities. At the very minimum, there will be support payments.” He pictured years and years of tidy monthly bills, and the thought of this obligation—which he was certainly capable of following through on—calmed him somewhat.

Rae crossed to the closest of the windows and opened it, allowing a fresh breeze into the room. Leaning her forehead against the frame, she fixed her attention on the ocean.

For a moment, Aidan admired the beauty of the woman. Rae had strong, compelling features, with thick, dark hair, rosy cheeks and a lush, wide mouth. Since the day he’d met her, he’d been attracted to Rae. Then, she’d been lean and fit, with small, high breasts and a curvy bottom he couldn’t tear his gaze from. Now, he was surprised to find that her new shape held a certain fascination for him, too.

He was so focused on the picture she made, outlined against the bright sunlight outside, that he almost missed her next words.

“This baby won’t need your support payments, Aidan.”

He took a moment to process that. “I know you earn a good living and you’re capable of handling everything on your own. But I can’t let you. It isn’t right. I’ll pay my share. And I want to be involved in other ways, too.”

That last bit startled him, as much as it obviously surprised Rae. She turned to him, her dark eyes narrowing skeptically.

When had he decided he wanted to be a father in a real sense? Aidan didn’t know. But it was true. He wasn’t going to walk away from this responsibility, no matter how much he didn’t want it.

She glanced out the window again. “That won’t be necessary. In fact, it won’t even be possible.”

So, he wasn’t good enough for their baby. He wasn’t surprised that she would think that. But what about financial support? Surely she didn’t mean to turn her back on that, as well. “You don’t want anything?”

“Not from you.”

This should have filled him with relief. Instead, Aidan was furious. With her, and with himself. He clenched his fists, and asked himself what kind of man felt like shaking a pregnant woman? Because that was certainly his urge right now. He wanted to grab her by the shoulders and make her look at him. He jammed his hands back into his pockets.

“You’re just saying that to hurt me.”

“I’m saying it because it’s true. You won’t have any responsibilities for me or anyone else.”

“But…”

“Aidan, listen.” She spoke sharply, her eyes flashing. “You won’t need to look after this baby, and neither will I. I’m not keeping it.”

FOR THE SECOND TIME that afternoon, Aidan looked utterly stunned, and Rae knew he wasn’t faking it. Even Johnny Depp couldn’t act that well. Still, it was hard to believe he hadn’t heard she was pregnant. Although they worked in different cities, there were constant phone and e-mail communications between the various branch offices and subsidiaries of Kincaid Communications. Surely someone would have told him?

But maybe everyone had assumed he knew. That she’d told him. Because the rumor mill had figured out their night together and, from that, had worked out the most likely reason she’d been banished to Pittsburgh.

And she had been banished, no matter how many times Aidan described it as a promotion. All acquisitions and mergers were handled out of the Seattle office, and that had been the reason Harrison had brought her into the organization in the first place. To handle those sorts of special deals.

Frankly, the everyday business she supervised in the Pittsburgh office, even though it did amount technically to a promotion in terms of salary and title, bored her silly. Aidan had to understand that. He was the same way. He thrived on the chase, just as much as she did.

It was one of the things she’d liked most about him, one of the reasons she’d thought maybe she’d finally met her match, in the romantic sense of the word. She’d never been attracted to men who weren’t as smart as she was, as driven and competitive.

Aidan had been all of these things. In addition, Rae had thought he was honorable and principled, too. That was the way he did business, at least.

But he’d slept with her, and then he’d shown her the door. Which made him a bitter disappointment…not the man she’d thought he was, at all.

Clearly still reeling from the emotional one-two punch Rae had just delivered, Aidan opened the sliding doors that led to the patio. He walked to the railing and, after a moment’s thought, she followed him there. This view had been a solace to her over the few days she’d been here. Now she gazed over the becalmed sea and wondered what it must look like during the winter storms. This would be a bleak place in December, she suspected.

“Why are you giving up the baby?”

“I would have thought that was obvious.”

In profile, Aidan’s chin was set, his mouth drawn in a long, disapproving line.

“I’m a career woman. Not the mothering sort. The baby will be happier with a mom and a dad. Parents who really want it.”

His gaze brushed against hers for a moment, conveying disbelief. “And you don’t? Want it?”

“Of course not.” What was he thinking? “You can’t be suggesting I became pregnant on purpose?”

“No.”

“That’s good. Because I didn’t. Men aren’t the only ones who can get carried away by…lust.” She chose that word because he, like most men, believed in lust and understood lust.

Whereas for her that night had been about magic and once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, but she’d be damned before she’d admit to him that she’d ever held such idealistic notions.

“You don’t think it will be hard? To give up the baby after it’s born?”

“Naturally it will be hard. This whole pregnancy business has been hard! Nine months has never seemed so long.”

Aidan reached out a hand to touch her, then withdrew it. “I’m sorry, Rae. You’ve been through so much. And coped with all of it on your own.”

She closed her eyes, hating the fact that he sounded so sincere and caring. He wasn’t really the kind of man a woman could count on. It was just that every now and then he happened to say exactly the right thing to make her crumble.

“When did you find out?” he asked softly.

“I suspected I was pregnant soon after the move.” Her breasts had been so tender and she’d been atypically tired; a drugstore kit had confirmed the news, all too easily.

“And you never considered…termination?”

“Why? Is that what you wish I’d done?”

A light shifted in his eyes and he made a noise of reconciliation. “Sorry, I forgot. You were raised Catholic.”

She’d told him so much about herself on that one night together. Far too much. They’d talked for hours, in between their lovemaking sessions. She’d felt as if she’d found her soul mate. He’d been so easy to confide in.

Later, she’d been mortified to realize that she had been the one doing most of the talking. She’d wondered if he’d even been listening.

Apparently he had. At least to some of her ramblings.

He was right about the Catholic upbringing, at any rate. She rarely went to church anymore and her mother had been dead for years, but still those childhood teachings rang in Rae’s ears.

So, no, abortion hadn’t been the right choice for her.

“Has it been tough, Rae? Were you sick at the beginning?”

“Yes, and I still get sick now, even though all the books say the nauseous stage is supposed to end after the first few months.” She turned her back to the railing and leaned against it. The wind in her hair was refreshing. What had possessed her to try baking a loaf of bread in this heat?

“It’s no fun looking like a house, either,” she continued. “Or having to drink all that milk, which I hate, by the way. Lately, I’ve had the worst heartburn. And just this week my feet have become so swollen I can only squeeze them into one pair of sandals.”

She saw him look down at her bare feet. In the past, she’d kept her toenails painted all the time—no matter what the season. But now they looked terrible. Even clipping them was difficult.

“Basically, being pregnant is rough. Anyone who says they like it must be crazy.”

Aidan listened to all her complaints without saying a word and she wondered what he was thinking. Was he judging her—and finding her lacking? There had to be something wrong with a woman who didn’t like being pregnant and didn’t even want to keep her own baby. Maybe he’d sensed this deficiency in her all along. Perhaps that was why he’d exiled her to Pittsburgh.

“Do Justine and Harrison know you’re pregnant?”

His question surprised her, but she nodded. “Sure.” Harrison had made a trip to the Pittsburgh office a month ago and Justine and Autumn had come with him. It was shortly after that visit that Justine had called her with the offer to use this house for the month of August.

Aidan rubbed his chin, thoughtfully. “So we were set up.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You told me Justine invited you to use this house, right?”

“Yes.”

“Well, Harrison extended the same invitation to me.”

“He did?” She thought of the duffel bag Aidan had brought inside. It was big. Obviously, he wasn’t here for a weekend jaunt. “So…what are we going to do?”

“Under the circumstances, we can’t stay under the same roof. Since you were here first, I’ll find lodgings elsewhere.”

She stared at him, wondering why his oh-so-rational plan didn’t sound at all appealing to her. It must be the hormones scrambling her thinking.

“I’ll be out of here as soon as possible, Rae.”

“Good. The sooner, the better.”

She tried to deliver her parting line with as much scorn as she could summon. Then she hurried inside, because damned if she didn’t feel as if she was about to cry.

CHAPTER THREE

AIDAN WATCHED RAE’S rushed exit from the patio. She was clearly upset and he knew he should follow her and try to calm her down.

But he wasn’t in any shape to help anyone right now. He held up his right hand. Sure enough, it was trembling.

Rae Cordell was pregnant with his baby.

He could not believe it.

His life plans had never involved getting married or having a child. Woman were too distracting. He’d learned that lesson at age sixteen, watching his friends make fools of themselves over Simone.

He’d wanted none of it for himself. Women were great, as long as you kept the upper hand. If you found that power slipping away, the smart thing to do was to back away immediately and find someone safer.

As he had backed away from Rae. Just one night together had been too much. He’d woken in a panic, knowing he’d made a terrible mistake. It wasn’t just that they worked together. He recognized something in Rae that he’d seen in Simone, too.

Like Simone, Rae had a natural ability to command attention. Call it confidence or charisma, or whatever the hell you wanted. Rae wasn’t a performer like Simone, but she still had star quality.

He’d wanted her the first time he’d met her. That on its own had signaled trouble, and so he’d tried to convince Harrison that the company didn’t need Rae Cordell. But Harrison was concerned about Aidan’s workload. He’d insisted they hang on to Rae, and so Aidan had been trapped. He’d done his best to keep one-on-one encounters with her to a minimum.

But the Triumph merger had undone all his best intentions. Late nights, last-minute negotiations and an out-of-town meeting had all added up to an impossible situation. One he hadn’t been strong enough to resist.

The morning after, he’d panicked. He’d slipped out of the hotel room without showering and caught an early flight to Seattle. Once back at the office, he’d immediately started working on damage control.

All the while, he’d berated himself. Why had he slept with her in the first place? He’d gone against all his principles. And presuming Rae had the contraceptives covered had to be one of the dumbest moves he’d ever made. Next to the night his mother died…

No. Don’t go there now.

Aidan rubbed the back of his neck, wincing at the thought of what Rae must have gone through these past months. She’d already shared some of the physical indignities of pregnancy…but what about the emotional burden?

Was she as blasé as she sounded about giving up the baby?

And what about the situation at work? He’d bet she hadn’t told anyone who the father of the baby was. But he guessed someone had figured it out. Which meant the entire company knew by now.

Everyone but him.

How was it that he hadn’t heard the rumors? Aidan thought back to a few occasions when he’d walked into an office or a meeting room and encountered a sudden, uncomfortable silence.

Well, of course no one had said anything to him. He was the boss. No one had dared.

Anyway, they must have assumed he knew. That Rae would have told him.

And she should have. Damn it, she should have told him about the baby.

TEN MINUTES LATER, Aidan went to the kitchen and found the Summer Island phone book. There weren’t any motels or hotels on the island. For the most part, the locals discouraged tourism. But there were a number of bed-and-breakfast places. He dialed Jennifer’s number first and was relieved when she answered in person and he didn’t get the standard recording.

“Hey Jenn, it’s Aidan. I’m here on the island and looking for a place to stay.”

“Aidan, you’re not kidding? You’re really here?”

“I’m on vacation.”

“You never take vacations.”

“I know. For good reason, apparently.” This one sure wasn’t going so hot.

“What do you mean?”

“Long story. I’ll fill you in later. For now, just please tell me you have room at your B and B. A single bed is all I need. I’m willing to share a bathroom.”

“Aidan, it’s August.” There was mild reproach in Jennifer’s voice.

Which meant she didn’t have room. And all the other B and B places in town would probably be booked, too. “What about a foldout couch?”

“We have one in the study. And I’d let you stay there, no problem, but that’s where we set up the crib.”

“Crib? Did someone forget to tell me something?” Was this a new trend? Had every single woman he knew gotten pregnant in the past nine months?

“I’m taking care of my brother’s baby while he and his wife are in Argentina. He’s teaching a four-week course.”

“You’re kidding.” He knew Jennifer already had to look after her father, who’d suffered a stroke many years ago, and an elderly aunt who’d moved to the island recently. Now she’d taken on her brother’s baby, as well?

“Afraid not. Look Aidan, I’m so sorry I can’t help you. Where are you now?”

“At Harrison and Justine’s.”

“They’re in Seattle for the month, aren’t they? Why don’t you just stay there?”

“Because while Harrison gave me a key to the place, Justine also gave a key to Rae Cordell. Rae works for Kincaid Communications, too.”

“Do you know each other? The house is certainly big enough for two….”

Not in this case. “I’ll figure something out. Not to worry.” Aidan heard a squawk. The baby?

“I’m dying to see you, Aidan. Why don’t you come for dinner tonight?”

He wanted to see Jennifer, too. But it sounded as though she had her hands full. He didn’t want her going to the work of preparing a meal for company. “How about I pick up some sandwiches in town and bring them over?”

“That would be great. I’ll make a few salads to go with them. Do you mind ordering enough for my dad and Aunt Annie, too?”

“No problem.”

“And why don’t you bring your friend Rae along, as well?”

He hadn’t said Rae was a friend. But before he could explain, the baby started squawking again, this time louder than before.

“I’ve got to go. I’ll see you and Rae later, Aidan. I can’t wait!”

JENNIFER WAS a naturally kind and hospitable person, so Aidan wasn’t surprised she’d extended an invitation to someone she’d never met. That didn’t mean he had to pass it on. However, if he didn’t, then he’d have to admit to Jennifer that he hadn’t, and then she would want to know why.

Aidan decided it would be easier to just invite Rae and let her say no.

He found her in the living room, feet up on the sofa, reading Forbes. He told her about the invitation. “Don’t feel as if you have to come.”

She amazed him by replying calmly, “That was very nice of Jennifer. Yes, I’d love to go.”

“You would?”

“Sure.” Her eyes betrayed nothing. No hint of the anger from earlier. No angst, no trauma, just…nothing.

“What time do you want to leave?” she asked.

“Half an hour,” Aidan said, giving her yet another reason to bow out. Not many women could get ready in that amount of time.

“Fine.”

True to her word, Rae was ready within thirty minutes. She’d combed her hair, put on a voluminous sundress and lipstick. She regarded her reflection in the full-length mirror of the foyer despondently. “I look like a puffer fish.”

She didn’t. She looked beautiful. It choked Aidan to admit it, but it was true. He’d never paid much attention to pregnant women before—he’d never had cause to. But despite her complaints, her insistence that she didn’t intend to keep the baby, there was an aura about her.

Rae grabbed her handbag, then waited while Aidan opened the door for her.

“Do you mind if I leave the top down?” he asked, as he helped her into the front seat of his car.

“It’s so hot—that would be nice.”

She needed a hand sitting down and he guessed she’d need help to get out, as well. He leaned down to find the lever to push the seat back and make more room for her bulk. Inadvertently, his shoulder brushed against her belly. It was surprisingly firm.

He stood up, embarrassed, yet oddly excited by the brief contact. That was his baby in there. And he’d touched her. It was still so incredible to him. Unbelievable and…amazing.

Wanting to touch again, yet knowing he couldn’t, he headed for the driver’s seat. As he reversed the car out of the driveway, Rae asked, “How far to your friend’s house?”

“Lavender Farm is on the north end of the island. About a thirty-minute drive.”

They stopped at the Cliffside Diner to pick up the packages of sandwiches that Aidan had ordered, then continued on the main road that circumnavigated the island.

Though paved, the route had many dangerous curves and the posted speed was low. Still, Rae’s long hair was whipped by the wind as Aidan accelerated. He leaned over to open the glove compartment and a navy silk scarf fell out.

“Use that.”

Rae gave him a questioning look, maybe wondering to whom the scarf belonged, then tied her hair back, as he’d suggested.

As the miles disappeared, Aidan began to relax. It was good to be on Summer Island again. The land to his left broke away to the ocean below with twenty-foot cliffs. The other side of the road was dotted with cultivated farmland and pastures that had been carved from the ancient rain forest. He slowed, in order to pass a small herd of cattle. A portion of the pasture fence had collapsed.

“Aren’t they beautiful?” Rae said. “I’ve never seen such black cows before.”

“Those are Kerries, an extremely rare breed of dairy cattle. They don’t produce as much milk as a Jersey or a Holstein, but the taste is incredibly creamy.”

Rae was surprised by Aidan’s detailed answer. “How do you know so much about cows?”

“For a couple of summers I worked at that farm. Mr. Olsen ran his operation the old-fashioned way, and I milked the cows by hand.”

Aidan could still remember the smell of the barn, the feel of the cows’ bellies against his head as he crouched low to access the fat, warm teats. There’d been a knack to coaxing the milk out of those teats and he’d been damn proud when he finally heard the satisfying metallic resonance of milk streaming into the galvanized pail held steady between his legs.

“I can’t imagine you milking a cow.” Rae looked at him speculatively.

“I loved that job. We’d carry the pails into the kitchen and Mrs. Olsen would run the milk through the separator. Once a week she’d give me a bottle of cream to take home to my mother. It was so thick, Mom had to spoon it into her coffee. But boy did it taste great on a bowl of fresh blueberries.”

Rae was still looking at him as if he’d just explained that he came from another planet. “Where did you and your mother stay when you were on the island?”

“We used to own the house across from the Kincaid place.”

“The pumpkin-colored yoga studio?”

“It was white in those days.” Molly Springfield, the new owner, apparently liked bright colors.

From Justine, and Harrison’s sister, Nessa, Aidan had heard that the yoga business was thriving, which surprised him. When he’d been a kid, the majority of islanders were fishermen and farmers who resisted the trends and so-called progress of the twentieth century. But they had cell phone service here now, so he supposed a yoga studio had been inevitable.

“Tell me about Jennifer,” Rae said. “Have you known her a long time?”

“Pretty much since we were in diapers.”

“She’s one of Simone DeRosier’s original Forget-Me-Not friends, right?”

He grimaced. “You know about that?”

“Last summer that was all anyone at work wanted to talk about. Simone’s tragic death and how devastated all of the Forget-Me-Not friends were.”

“Yeah, I can imagine.” The office grapevine worked well…except where he was concerned, obviously.

“Everyone was shocked when they found out Simone had been murdered. But it was never clear to me why it was assumed to be suicide in the first place.”

“Simone was found dead in a running car in her own garage. There was a letter with her that seemed to be a suicide note. It seemed pretty clear-cut at the time.”

“So how did Harrison figure out that one of your friends had killed her?”

“There were a number of things that didn’t add up. In the end, they all pointed to Emerson.” Like Harrison and Gabe, the landscape business owner had been in love with Simone. Only his love had grown into a sick obsession.

“I’m sorry,” Rae said. “I shouldn’t have raised such a painful topic.”

Aidan glanced in the rearview mirror and saw the dark look on his face that must have prompted Rae’s apology. He made an effort to smile. “That’s okay. It happened a long time ago. Now that Harrison is remarried I think a lot of the wounds have begun to heal.”

“Justine is a terrific lady,” Rae agreed.

Aidan pointed up the road. “There’s Lavender Farm.”

He eased off the accelerator. A handcrafted sign, nailed to the twisted, dark red branch of an arbutus tree, read: Lavender Farm Bed-And-Breakfast.

“Pretty,” Rae murmured.

“Wait until you see the rest of the place.”

He drove through a grove of tall cedars, veering slowly to the left, and then suddenly they were in a clearing. The two-story clapboard home sat in the midst of a rambling English-style garden. Ivy grew up and along the porch. Delicate blue hydrangea framed the doorway. And flower beds, mostly of lavender, spread out in all directions.

“I feel like I’m in a fairy tale,” Rae said, her head swiveling as she took in her surroundings. “Or maybe a nursery rhyme. ‘Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?’”

Taken aback by the prosaic comment, Aidan stared at Rae. When she saw him looking, her smile immediately vanished.

“What?” she demanded. “Did you think I was only capable of appreciating a healthy balance sheet and a profitable operating statement?”

Well, yeah. Up until today, he’d mostly seen Rae in a business environment. Now, all of a sudden, she was pregnant and quoting children’s rhymes, and earlier, she’d pulled a loaf of bread from the oven. Okay, that had been out of a package—he’d seen the wrapper on the counter—and she’d burned it so it was inedible, but still, the mere idea that she even knew how to turn on an oven was antithetical to his original view of her.

As Aidan had anticipated, Rae needed help getting out of the front seat. He’d no sooner let go of her hand than he heard his name.

“Aidan!” A woman waved at them from the porch. Jennifer’s blond hair was still long and straight—the same as always. Her smile was welcoming. Uncomplicated. The only thing different about this picture was the baby she had balanced on her hip.

“Hey, Jenn.” Aidan stepped forward to kiss her cheek. “This is Rae Cordell from our Pittsburgh office. And this must be Erica.” He tugged the baby’s bare foot gently.

“Hi, Jennifer. It’s nice to meet you.” Though her words were friendly, Rae didn’t seem as relaxed as she’d been on the drive over. Her smile was stiff now, and she hadn’t removed her sunglasses, even though they stood in shade.

“Rae, I’m glad you could make it on such short notice.” Jennifer shook the other woman’s hand, then glanced back at Aidan, her eyes registering surprise.

He should have told her Rae was pregnant.

“We thought we’d eat outside,” Jennifer said. “We’ve set up the picnic table in the back.”

“Sounds good. I’ll get the food from the car.” As Aidan retrieved the paper bags from the backseat, Rae appeared at his side, holding out a hand for one of the sacks.

“You didn’t tell me she had a baby,” Rae whispered.

“She doesn’t—that’s her niece. She’s babysitting.”

With the baby still resting on her hip, Jennifer led her guests to the back garden. It seemed to Aidan that Rae followed almost reluctantly. What was with her? Suddenly she seemed sorry that she’d decided to come. So then, why had she agreed to the invitation? He certainly hadn’t pressured her into saying yes.

They reached the patio, where a picnic table had been set with a flowered cloth. Plates and cutlery were stacked next to a pitcher of iced tea.

Sitting side by side at the table were Jennifer’s father, Phil, and her aunt Annie. Clearly, the two of them were brother and sister. Both were tall and thin, like Jennifer. However, while Jennifer had fine, feminine features, her aunt’s and father’s faces were stronger, more angular.

Jennifer provided introductions, then settled the baby in a high chair. Aidan noticed that Rae had elected to sit on the edge of the bench farthest away from the small child. He squeezed himself into the middle, between Rae and Jenn.

“So, dear,” Jennifer’s father asked as the food was served, “when is your baby due?”

“In about two weeks, is my guess,” Annie replied.

“Actually, three,” Rae said.

Annie just smiled. “We’ll see.”

“Until she retired last year, my aunt was a midwife in Prince Rupert,” Jennifer explained. “Would you pass the potato salad, please? By the way, Auntie, I used up all our eggs in that salad.”

“I’ll go to the farm tomorrow and buy more.” The older woman passed the salad to her niece. To Rae and Aidan she explained, “Jennifer insists on free-range, organically fed chickens and eggs. That means a trip to the Red Door Farm, which is all the way on the other side of the island.”

“Their eggs are the best,” Jennifer explained. “How many babies do you think you delivered in your career, Auntie?”

“Oh…hundreds. And I can tell by the way Rae is carrying that she’s going to have a—”

“Annie!” Phil admonished. “Maybe Rae wants the sex to be a surprise. What are you hoping for, dear? A boy or a girl?”

Aidan squirmed, uncomfortable on Rae’s behalf. She must get these questions all the time. How did she…

“It doesn’t matter,” Rae said bluntly. “I’m planning to give the child up for adoption.” She twisted to look beyond Aidan to Jennifer. “Can you pass the bowl this way, too, please? I love potato salad.”

CHAPTER FOUR

“BUT AIDAN, I don’t understand.” Jennifer rinsed lingering bubbles from the platter she’d just washed and passed it to him.

“You’re not the only one.” Aidan dried the china carefully. It was covered with an ornate pattern of gold and flowers and looked about a hundred years old. He knew it was part of a set Jennifer had inherited from her mother. Jenn was always buying replacement pieces on eBay.

“Why would Harrison tell you that you could stay at the summer house if Justine had already given a key to Rae?”

Aidan glanced out the window. Rae and Annie were still seated at the picnic table, talking. Phil had offered to put the baby to bed when Erica had fallen asleep in her high chair.

“I think they were in cahoots,” he finally admitted.

Jenn caught on quickly. “You mean they were matchmaking?”

“Yeah.” Damn, but he was going to nail Harrison next time he saw him…

“But isn’t the timing a little off? I mean, with Rae eight months pregnant and all. Unless… Oh, Aidan. You aren’t the father, are you?” She stared at him, oblivious to the fact that she’d left the water running.

He didn’t answer, but his face gave him away.

“Well,” Jennifer said. “That explains a lot.”

He reached over. Turned off the tap. “Yeah, it’s quite a mess. I think I’m still in shock. I just found out today that Rae is pregnant.”

“How is that possible? I thought you worked together?”

“We used to work together. Until I promoted Rae to Pittsburgh.”

Jenn draped the washcloth over the edge of the sink. “That’s a long way from Seattle.”

“That was the idea.”

“Oh, Aidan. That’s so like you.”

“What do you mean?”

“A girl starts to get close, breaks through your defenses…and you banish her to Siberia.”

“It was a promotion.” God, Jenn was as bad as Rae. “What’s so bad about Pittsburgh, anyway?”

“This isn’t about Pittsburgh. It’s about you running away from emotional commitments. You always do, you know.”

“That’s not fair.” But this time, his protest lacked heat. It was true that he preferred to keep his relationships with women tidy. Uncomplicated, mutually beneficial and carefully limited in terms of time.

Nothing about his single night with Rae had fit into any of those categories.

Jenn eyed him with the understanding of someone who’d known him a long time. “So how do you feel about the baby?”

“I don’t know. Like I told you, I’m still in shock. Anyway, it doesn’t matter how I feel.”

“Oh, Aidan. Why would you say that?”

“Given that the baby is being put up for adoption, sperm donor seems more descriptive of my role.”

“You sound a little bitter about that. Do you want Rae to keep the baby?”

“God, no.” Of course, he didn’t. The route Rae had chosen was best for all of them in the long run. It was just that he needed time to come to grips with the idea.

“That’s something else I can’t understand,” Jennifer said. “Rae sounded so matter-of-fact when she said she was giving up the baby for adoption. As if the baby were no more important to her than an out-of-date piece of furniture.”

She had sounded a little callous, but Aidan felt compelled to defend her. “Rae’s pretty serious about her career. A family was never part of her plan.”

Jennifer eyed a picture of Erica that was displayed on the fridge. “Yes, well, plans change. Life happens and people adjust. Maybe you and Rae should at least consider…”

“Oh, no. We’re not considering anything.”

“But—”

“Please, Jenn. It’s bad enough that Harrison and Justine have tricked us into staying at the same house. Don’t you turn on me, too.”

As he’d expected, Jenn was too softhearted to press her point of view any further. “Of course, I’ll support whatever decision you make. You’re one of my oldest friends, Aidan. I can’t tell you how great it is to see you again.”

He gave her a hug. “It’s good to be here.”

Surprisingly, it was. Not everything on this island had been soured by Simone, and that was a good thing to remind himself of now and then.

“How are things with you?” he asked, pulling back from the friendly embrace.

“I’ve been getting more serious about the lavender. I’m not just making sachets now, but linen water, bath oils and I’m developing a new hand cream, too.”

“You were always the crafty one in the group. Say, how are Nessa and Gabe doing? Harrison told me their divorce was just finalized. He’s pretty worried about his little sister.”

“Nessa is doing well. Her MS has been in remission for quite a while now.”

“I’m relieved to hear that.” He still couldn’t believe Nessa had had the misfortune to contract such a serious disease.

“Yes. And the day care she opened last September keeps her busy and happy, though I’m glad she closes for the summer and takes a nice, long break. Of course, right now Autumn’s staying with her.”

Aidan remembered Harrison telling him that Autumn didn’t want to leave the island during the summer, and that she’d convinced her father to let her stay with her aunt for a couple of weeks. Aidan was pretty sure Harrison and Justine were making the most of the opportunity for a second honeymoon. They’d been married less than a year, after all.

“I’m glad Nessa’s doing so well. What about Gabe?”

“He’s struggling,” Jenn admitted. “Gabe took the divorce really hard. Which is surprising, considering how he treated Nessa when she was his wife.”

“No kidding.” Even after Simone’s marriage to Harrison, and his own marriage to Nessa, Gabe had never stopped carrying a torch for the singer. And she’d taken full advantage of his feelings for her. Whenever Harrison was working late or on a business trip, she’d gone crying to Gabe. Apparently, Gabe had thought nothing of ignoring his wife so he could cater to Simone’s emotional needs.

“I’d like to see Nessa before I leave.”

Jennifer looked puzzled. “I’m sure that won’t be a problem. You’re here for three weeks, right?”

“That was the idea. Before I found out who I’d be boarding with.” He glanced out the window again. Rae was holding back her thick hair with both hands, resting her elbows on the picnic table. Whatever Jennifer’s aunt was saying, it seemed to have the younger woman fascinated. “What do you think they’re talking about?”

Jennifer followed his gaze. Shrugged. “Babies, probably.”

He felt a nervous twitch of his stomach. Babies, indeed. And he’d thought he was stressed out in Seattle.

“YOU WORRIED ABOUT having this baby?”

Annie’s watery eyes were almost the same color as the lavender blossoms in the garden behind her. Rae still couldn’t get over how pretty this place was. The house, the gardens, even the picnic table, which had been set with real china and not the cheap outdoor plastic stuff Rae used when she had a barbecue.

Which had been once, come to think of it.

“I’m scared shitless, Annie.” She cupped her hands over her enormous belly. “You’d think we humans would have evolved past this point by now. I mean, there’s got to be an easier way.”

Annie seemed amused by that. “Such as?”

“Test tubes and incubators, maybe? I don’t know— I’m not a doctor. I just think our current system is a little archaic.” She gazed skyward. “No offense, God. I’m sure you did the best you could at the time.”

“Rae!”

Had she shocked Jennifer’s aunt? No, Annie looked more amused than scandalized. Rae leaned forward over the picnic table. “There’ve been a lot of scientific advancements since Adam and Eve. You know what I mean?”

Annie was laughing now. “Forty-five years of midwifery and I’ve never met a first-time mother quite like you.”

Rae could believe that. Most women like her would be smart enough to make sure they didn’t get pregnant in the first place. She’d never been the kind of girl who dreamed about her wedding day or thought about names for the children she would have one day.

She read Business Week and Forbes, not Wedding Bells or Today’s Parent.

And she was scared as hell of delivering this baby.

“Well, stop worrying,” Annie said. “You may not think you want children, but you have a body built for popping them out.”

“You can tell?” Rae looked down. She could remember what her figure used to look like, but right now, as far as she was concerned, she resembled nothing more than a blob.

“I’ve delivered hundreds of babies. Of course, I can tell.”

“Hundreds of babies? Tell me, Annie. Did you ever lose a mother?”

Annie was so animated that she hadn’t seemed at all old to Rae until that moment. As the spark left her eyes, she folded her weathered, wrinkled hands on the picnic table.

“Once. I lost a mother once.”

Rae felt her stomach tighten ominously. She knew she shouldn’t ask, but like a teenage girl drawn to a horror movie, she had to know. “What happened?”

“I worked in a rural area, you have to understand. We referred all the high-risk cases to Prince Rupert, sometimes even to Vancouver. But there was this one woman. Lila was her name. She was as high-risk as they come. A smoker, a drinker and diabetic, too. As if that wasn’t enough, when she was thirty-eight weeks along, her baby shifted into breech position and wouldn’t budge.”

“That doesn’t sound good.”

“It wasn’t. We told Lila’s husband to take her to the city. We arranged an appointment with a specialist. But they wouldn’t go.”

“Did the baby survive?”

Annie shook her head. “We lost them both. Full moon that night. I’ll never forget how the father cried.”

“That must have been terrible.”

“The worst night of my life. And I’ve seen a lot of hard things.”

Rae could only imagine. As a midwife, Annie had dealt with life at its most elemental level. So different from the business world that Rae had chosen. What would Annie make of that world? The modern office buildings and posh conference rooms? The wheeling and dealing over morning lattes and evening cocktails?

“Maybe I shouldn’t have told you about Lila, when you’re already worried about your own delivery. But you’ll be seeing Dr. Marshall, right?”

Rae nodded. “Justine set up weekly appointments on my behalf before I arrived.”

“Dr. Marshall’s a little young, but she knows what she’s doing.”

Despite her nerves, Rae had to smile. A little young? She’d had her first appointment with the doctor last week, and the physician was in her late forties, possibly even fifty.

“You’re going to be fine, Rae.” Annie patted her hand.

Rae wanted to believe her. She seemed like a straight shooter, this Annie, and Rae liked her. But all Rae’s instincts warned her that she wasn’t going to be fine.

Something was going to go wrong. She didn’t know what. She just knew it. Which was strange, because she wasn’t usually the type to indulge in premonitions.

She noticed Annie eyeing her speculatively. “I suppose you think I’m a freak because I don’t want to keep this baby?”

“Well…if a woman isn’t cut out to be a mother, it’s better that she has the courage to admit it up front. I’ve delivered plenty of babies to families that weren’t fit to raise them. Alcoholic mothers. Abusive fathers.” Annie’s eyes became still more glazed, as she thought back to the past. “Just about broke my heart to pass those little bundles to those parents. In fact, one time I didn’t. Got into a little trouble with the law over that.”

“What kind of trouble?”

“Never mind, hon. It all worked out in the end. I finally persuaded the powers that be that the child’s needs had to come first.”

“Well, I’m not an alcoholic and I’d like to think I’m not abusive, either.” Though her personal assistant at work might disagree with that second point. “But there are other ways of being an unfit mother.”

“Sure there are.”

“A child knows when she isn’t wanted. That kind of emotional abuse is just as bad as getting used as a punching bag, don’t you think?”

Now Annie’s eyes were suddenly sharp. And focused on her.

Rae realized she needed to cover her tracks. “I mean, that’s what I think. But you’re the expert. I’d like to know your opinion.”

“Being loved is the most important thing. You’re absolutely right about that.”

“Exactly. And some women just don’t have the maternal makeup to deal with a crying baby or a snotty-nosed toddler.” Or a chubby, school-age child who turned into a gangly, awkward adolescent.

“Some women don’t.” Annie’s tone was completely nonjudgmental.

“Did you have children, Annie?”

“No. Funny, isn’t it? I was too busy helping other women delivering babies to have any of my own. Never met the right man to have them with. Most wanted me to give up my career and I would never do that.”

“Me, either.”

Annie reached across the table to pat her hand. “My career provided me with a very full and satisfying life. Are you sure that yours will be enough for you?”

“Of course it will. Before I found out I was pregnant, I was very happy.” Okay, “happy” might be a bit of an exaggeration.

Once, before she’d met Aidan, she’d been close to happy. Satisfied, actually. Her mother’s death had released her from a lifetime of guilt and melancholy, and her career had been taking off. As for men, she’d dated occasionally, but she’d felt no emotional connection to any of them.

She assumed the flaw was hers. She had something missing in her, emotionally. Given her childhood, that wasn’t surprising.

But then she’d met Aidan, and for the first time in her life she’d experienced it all: emotional ups and downs, the thrill of seeing him walk into the room and dizzy joy when he actually smiled at her. Suddenly, all the romantic songs she heard on the radio made sense to her. She had rented a DVD of The Way We Were and actually cried.

“It’s your life, Rae. Just make sure that you focus on the things that are important to you.” Annie’s attention shifted back to the farmhouse. “Aidan is waving at us. I think it’s time for you to go.”

Rae looked over her shoulder. Sure enough, there was Aidan, walking with Jennifer by his side. They looked so relaxed and easy together.

What would it be like to have a friend like that? A friend you’d known forever, someone you could really talk to?

As a child, she hadn’t been good at making friends. The closest she’d come was the next-door neighbor. Effie had been gray-haired and plump. She had a large extended family in Greece, but she’d lived alone since her children had grown up and her husband had died. She’d seemed to enjoy Rae’s visits.

Rae would drop over for a piece of honey-soaked baklava, or one of the sugar-coated kourabiedes Effie baked for Christmas, and Effie would talk. Effie always had something to say, usually anecdotes about her childhood in Greece, and Rae would sit and listen, feeling wonderfully safe and warm.

Yes, those afternoons she had felt happy.

But when Rae was sixteen, Effie had decided to move back to Greece. Her house was sold to a family with three young children; a couple of times the mother asked Rae to babysit, but she always claimed to have too much homework.

“Ready to head home?” Aidan asked.

She nodded, then sighed and untangled her bulk from the picnic bench. Once she was standing, she held out a hand to Jennifer’s aunt.

“It was really interesting talking to you, Annie.”

Annie took hold of her hand as if she didn’t intend to let go. “I have more stories to tell you. And cream for your belly. You come back and see me soon.”

“I will,” Rae promised. To her surprise, she really wanted to.

AT TWO IN THE MORNING, Rae woke up. She needed to pee. This was getting old, not sleeping through the night.

And the floor was cold. Where were her slippers? Her housecoat was on the chair where she’d left it, but the slippers were missing in action.

Rae opened her door and headed down the hall. A night-light had been plugged into one of the wall sockets, probably for Autumn’s benefit, but Rae was grateful for it, too.

From the far end of the hall, a line of light glowed beneath the door to Aidan’s room.

Why was he up at this hour?

Probably he couldn’t fall asleep. Rae could understand. When she’d found out she was pregnant, she hadn’t slept at all for several nights. It wasn’t her fault that Aidan had discovered the news so late, and Rae refused to feel guilty about it. If Aidan hadn’t deliberately isolated himself from her, he would have known.

She slipped into the bathroom, took care of business, then headed back to her room. She’d almost made it, too, when Aidan’s door opened.

He was still wearing the jeans and shirt he’d had on earlier in the evening.

“Having trouble sleeping?” he asked her.

“That last glass of water was a big mistake.” She tightened the sash on her bathrobe. Which was another mistake, since she only ended up emphasizing the roundness of her stomach. She saw Aidan’s gaze go there. Linger there.

Hey, buddy. I have a face.

“What about you?” she asked, grudgingly. “Need a sleeping pill?” She couldn’t use them in her condition, but she had them in the travel bag she always took on business trips.

“I’ll pass. One sleepless night won’t kill me.”

Despite her determination to stay tough, she felt a twinge of sympathy for him. “You’ve had a bit of a shock.”

“I’ll say.”

She waited for him to upbraid her again, for not sharing the news sooner. And if he even tried, she was more than prepared to fight back.

But in his eyes she saw more resignation than outrage.

“So,” she said. “Will you be leaving in the morning?” On the drive home he’d made it clear that he wouldn’t be staying any longer than necessary.

“That’s what I’ve been thinking about.”

He leaned a hand on the door frame and she tried not to notice how good he looked. He skied to stay in shape—skied and mountain biked. Clearly his regimen worked, because he had not gained an ounce since their night together in Philadelphia.

It wasn’t fair. If babies couldn’t be produced simply with test tubes and incubators, couldn’t the process at least require the man to gain weight, too?

“So,” she prodded. “The results of all this thinking are…?”

“For eight months you’ve been dealing with this—” he cleared his throat “—this pregnancy, on your own.”

“True.”

“It’s time I did my share.”

“Great.” She cupped her hands around her belly. “I’ll just slip this off and hand it over.”

His grin was the first sign she’d been given that he still had a sense of humor.

“I’ll bet you wish you could.”

“You have no idea.”

He realized she’d been leaning against the wall. “I’m sorry. I’m keeping you up, and you’re obviously exhausted.”

But she wanted to hear what he had to say. How he was planning to start shouldering his share of the load. “It’s okay. I’m going to have to pee in another hour, anyway. It’s hardly worth going back to bed.”

He didn’t buy it. “Come on, Rae.” He opened her bedroom door and waited at the doorway until she’d settled back into bed.

“Can I get you anything?”

“Yeah, a pedicure and a box of bonbons.”

He didn’t laugh as she’d expected him to.

“Maybe tomorrow.”

“But tomorrow you’ll be gone.”

“Is that what you want?”

The man was infuriating. It was too late for mind games. “I told you there was plenty of room in this house for two. You’re the one who decided you didn’t want to stay.”

There’d been a split second when she’d first seen him in the kitchen, when she’d had a crazy thought. He’s come for me, her foolish self had cheered. He’s finally realized how much he loves me, and he’s come to get me and take me home.

It hurt to admit to herself just how pathetic she could be. Her only consolation was that Aidan didn’t know about this weakness of hers. Her weakness for him.

And that was what really made her crazy. Even now that she knew he was the sort of man who would sleep with an employee, then move her like a pawn to a different city, she was still deeply affected by him.

She hated that.

Thank God he was leaving.

“So where are you going?” she asked again.

“I’ve decided I’d like to stay. If that’s still okay with you.”

Why the about-face? She tried to read the answer in his eyes, but it was too late and she was too tired. “I don’t understand.”

“It’s not that complicated. I’d like to stay here with you until the baby’s born.”

Rae’s stomach dropped at the word baby. “Aidan, I’ve already told you that you don’t have to worry about that. It’s nothing to do with you.”

“You’re wrong. This baby definitely has something to do with me. And for the next few weeks, so do you.”

CHAPTER FIVE

“GO TO HELL, AIDAN. I didn’t need you for the first eight months of this pregnancy and I don’t need you now.”

Aidan took Rae’s insult without comment.

“If I were you,” she continued, “I’d catch a flight to Hawaii and enjoy myself. Have yourself a real vacation.”

“Oh, really. You want me to sit on a beach and drink mai tais while you stay here and have our baby?”

“Don’t call it ‘ours.’ It isn’t ours, Aidan. It belongs to Julia and Neil Thompson. They’re the ones who’ll get to call this baby ‘ours.’”

Aidan reeled. “Julia and Neil Thompson?”

She nodded. “I arranged the adoption through an agency. I handpicked the parents myself, and they’re perfect. Julia’s a kindergarten teacher. She’s got to love kids, right? And Neil’s a social worker, so he’ll be one of those warm, sensitive types, too.”

“Warm and sensitive.”

Every time Rae stopped talking it seemed all Aidan could do was repeat the last few words she’d said.

“Snap out of it, Aidan. What’s the problem? I told you I was putting the baby up for adoption.”

“But…” Aidan blinked his eyes several times. “Do you have more information on these people?”

“Sure. The agency sent me reams of background information.”

“Okay.” He took a deep breath. “You’re tired. You should get some sleep. But in the morning I’m going to want to read everything you’ve got.”

“But…”

He shut the door and she heard his footsteps as he walked away down the hall.

Oddly enough, Rae did fall asleep after that, and when she woke up the next morning, Aidan’s words were still in her head. This baby definitely has something to do to me. And for the next few weeks, so do you.

He’d made his decision out of guilt and responsibility. Rae was certain this was the case. And yet, she had to admit that she was glad, really, really glad, he’d decided to stay.

She wasn’t happy about feeling this way. In fact, she hated to think that the man still held this much power over her.

But there it was. When it came to Aidan Wythe, she was an absolute fool.

Of course, there was always the possibility that he’d rethought his position over the past couple of hours. For all she knew, he could have tossed his suitcase back in his car and taken the first ferry off the island this morning.

Rae dressed for her morning walk in shorts and T-shirt, then headed to the kitchen for breakfast. In the past, this was a meal she had always skipped, but since she’d found out she was pregnant, she’d become more disciplined.

The sight of Aidan standing by the stove stopped her short. “You’re still here?”

“I told you last night I was staying.”

“Yes. But before you slept with me, you promised I was going to be the head of the acquisitions department. Then, instead, you made me head of operations in Pittsburgh.” She perched on a bar stool. “I just thought you might have changed your mind again.”

Aidan gave her a dirty look, but instead of defending himself, he pointed at a frying pan on top of the gas range. Now she noticed a pitcher of beaten eggs, and bowls of diced peppers, mushrooms and ham on the side.

“Would you like an omelet?”

How could she say no?

When they were done eating, Aidan asked to see the information on the adoptive parents. Rae brought down the envelope from her bedroom, but Aidan didn’t even glance inside.

“What are you going to do now?” he asked.

“Walk to the beach.”

“Sounds good.”

“It does?”

“Yeah.” He shot her a challenging look. “Do you mind if I come with you?”

What was with him? He couldn’t want to be spending all this time with her. Yet, he seemed perfectly content as he donned his sunglasses and locked the front door on the way out.

There were no sidewalks, so they kept to the left-hand side of the road.

“Why did your mother choose this island for a vacation spot? Why not someplace in the U.S.?”

“She and Harrison’s mother were best friends. And the Kincaids have had a place here since the eighteen hundreds.”

“Is the house that old?”

“It’s been renovated several times, but I believe the Kincaids have always been faithful to the original architecture.”

Aidan filled her in on bits and pieces of Summer Island’s history. As they neared the beach, he shielded his eyes from the sun and focused on someone ahead of them. “That looks like Harrison’s sister. She has Autumn with her.”

It was early in the day and there weren’t many people on the beach, just a few mothers with young children. Rae had no trouble spotting the woman Aidan was talking about. Nessa was a petite, pretty woman with dark hair. She was tossing a Frisbee to a little girl who appeared to be around seven years old. The little girl had dark hair, too, but she was more than just pretty. Even at her young age, Rae could tell she was going to grow up to be exceptionally beautiful.

Clearly, this was Simone DeRosier’s daughter. Though the jazz singer had been dead for a year by the time Rae joined Kincaid Communications, she had heard plenty of stories about the famous woman from her coworkers. According to the rumors, though Simone had often been away on tours and promotional gigs, she’d been a devoted mother, if not quite a devoted wife.

“I heard that Harrison’s sister has multiple sclerosis,” Rae said. “But she looks perfectly normal.”

“We’re hoping she’s going to be one of the lucky ones,” Aidan said. “The disease has been in remission for almost a year now.”

“Autumn is beautiful,” Rae said. “She looks amazingly like her mother.”

“Yeah. That’s what everyone says.”

Aidan sounded gloomy, and Rae shot him a curious look. Simone DeRosier had been a classic beauty. Surely the fact that her daughter resembled her was not a bad thing?

NESSA KINCAID BROOKE spun the Frisbee toward her niece, then froze as a pregnant woman approached the beach from the road. Nessa had antennae for expectant mothers, just as in a crowd she always picked out babies…especially infants.

The pregnant woman walked in that particular wide-footed way that was so common to the final trimester. One hand rested on her rounded belly.

What would it feel like to have a baby inside you? With all her heart, Nessa envied the woman. She was beautiful, too, with dark, wavy hair and a fair, yet rosy complexion.

Nessa checked out the man beside her, then blinked as she recognized Aidan.

Harrison had told her Aidan was coming to the island for a holiday. So that meant this woman with him was Rae Cordell, the up-and-coming corporate genius Harrison was so pumped about.

He and Justine had told her that, while Aidan wasn’t saying anything, the scuttlebutt at Kincaid Communications was that Rae and Aidan had had an affair, then Aidan had transferred Rae to the Pittsburgh office.

It all sounded too sordid to Nessa. Not like Aidan, at all. Yet, the fact that he was here with Rae now, made it likely the story was true.

“Watch out, Auntie Nessa!”

The Frisbee was coming right for her head. Nessa snatched it out of the air, then laughed at Autumn. “That was a good throw.” She pointed to Aidan. “But look who’s here.”

Autumn glanced over her shoulder, then started to run. “Uncle Aidan!”

Nessa followed at a slower pace, watching as Autumn hurled herself into Aidan’s arms for a hug. Aidan’s eyes were on Nessa as he squeezed the little girl briefly, then gently set her on the ground.

In the past, Nessa had noticed a certain reserve in Aidan’s manner with the little girl. Given the close relationship between Aidan and the Kincaid family—in particular, Harrison—that had always struck her as odd.

“Aidan, hi. Harrison told me you were coming to the island.”

“Hey, Nessa. It’s good to see you. You’re looking terrific.” He hugged her warmly.

“Uncle Aidan!” Autumn tugged on the hem of his T-shirt. “Auntie Nessa taught me some new songs. Do you want to hear them?”

He brushed his curly hair back from his forehead. “Umm…”

“Later, honey!” Nessa laughed. “Give us a minute to chat, first.” She held out a hand to Rae, trying not to look too longingly at the obvious evidence of her pregnancy. “Hi, I’ve been meaning to drop by the summerhouse to introduce myself. Harrison has told me how invaluable you are at Kincaid Communications.”

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