Five of Hearts, page 13
“Hollis is just messing with you. He knows what would scare you the most and he’s using it to make you miserable.” Catherine flattened her head against the back of the seat and closed her eyes. “This is my fault,” she whispered.
“That’s crazy. He’s had it out for me ever since his son freaked out over fathering triplets and ran.”
“Yeah, well, he’s had it out for me—and by extension you—since I told him to get his cheating hands off me, that I would not have an affair with him!”
Again, they both checked the backseat for eager listeners.
“You’re kidding me! Hollis Bainbridge? Oh, that’s just … ew!”
“What can I say? I was hot stuff.”
Shannon grinned, thankful for the comedic interlude. However, it was short-lived.
“Promise me you won’t let him near those children. I’m not saying he’d do anything to harm them, but he’s got a mean, vengeful streak. Two Fitzgerald women have pissed him off and who knows how far he’s willing to go to assuage his manly pride.”
“I appreciate your telling me this.” Shannon smiled sadly at her mother. “Kind of makes me wish we could just pick up and move out to Carmel with you. Get away from Scallop Shores and Hollis Bainbridge.”
“You run away from him, you are no better than Vincent. Stand strong and let him know you don’t take crap from anyone. You’re a Fitzgerald.” They reached out and squeezed their fingers together.
“Besides, you have a smokin’ hot neighbor that, I have a feeling, would miss the heck out of you—and the kids—if you were to move.”
“And that’s your polite way of saying ‘I staked out Carmel, go get your own damned spot,’ right?”
“Didn’t say that.”
“Didn’t have to.” Shannon grinned as she bore right for the exit to the airport.
• • •
Dean paced back and forth, his cell phone clenched tightly to his ear. They shouldn’t have done this. Why couldn’t they just accept that he wanted no part of any reality TV show, reunions, or anything that required getting on a plane and stepping out of his anonymous bubble?
“Hey, Jax suggested I come in person. He said you have this thing for your hot, single mom neighbor. He said if I brought Vanessa and the baby, that maybe we could convince you to come back. Just to tape the show, man. Then you’re free to go.”
“Toby, you’ve got a normal life now. You have a wife and a baby. You do the 9-5 thing. Don’t you feel that it’s enough?”
“I’m not doing this TV gig because I’m jonesing for the old life. It’s just a lark. Something my kids will get a kick out of when I’m older, and no one asks us to do reunion shows anymore. Because, you know, eventually they won’t want us anymore. The public, not our kids.” Toby chuckled.
Dean sighed, letting all the air out of his lungs before refilling them. He grabbed a handful of hair and tugged. This wasn’t going well. They just weren’t hearing him.
“I can’t do it, Tobers. I’ve got too much to lose.”
He thought of Shannon, the look on her face if she happened to flip on the TV and catch his ugly mug on a show about boy bands past. She’d hate him. She’d read him the riot act about how she had trusted him and how he betrayed that trust. And she’d be right. He’d deserve every ounce of loathing.
“Does this have to do with your neighbor?” Toby asked, suddenly serious.
“I lied to her, man. I guess you could call it a lie by omission. She doesn’t know who I am. And I don’t want her to. It would change things. It would change us.”
“Does she have something against boy bands? Get her heart broken when her fan mail wasn’t answered?”
“No, you ass! It’s not her. It’s me. I’ve never met a woman who didn’t act differently the minute she found out I was famous. They start calculating. They’re picturing themselves with my last name, thinking of all the checks they’ll be able to write.”
“Ouch. You are one jaded pop star. You’re really clueless if you think that all women are that greedy and manipulative.” Toby tsked.
“You’re lucky. You’ve got Vanessa and she’s great. But do you ever wonder if you guys had met after you got famous, if things would have been different?”
“Vanessa is Vanessa. When you fall in love and really get to know someone, you know they don’t change, their core principles don’t change, just by adding a little bit of money.”
Dean stopped pacing and considered this gem. He didn’t want to think badly of Shannon. He couldn’t picture her as anything but generous and nurturing, giving of her time, energy, and affection. He had everything exactly the way he wanted it. Maybe he was being unreasonable, but that cold, gnawing fear just wouldn’t let go.
“If you see a future for you and this woman, you need to be truthful with her. Does she know about that frickin’ sham of a paternity suit?”
“No.” His voice was glum. “I’m evil, okay? I lied to her about who I was. I left out the part about the crazy chick crying ‘Daddy!’” Dean paced up to the wall and thudded his head against it. “Toby, if you only knew how devoted she was to her kids. She’s … they’re … ”
“You want the whole package.” Now it was Toby’s turn to let out a long sigh. “Maybe I should come out there. You’re delusional. You need an intervention to show you just how bad you’re screwing up your chances with Ms. Perfect here.”
“Don’t you dare! Shannon can’t find out about you guys.”
“Tell me something, Dino. If it weren’t for her, if you didn’t have to worry about anyone accidentally spotting you on TV and having your cover blown, would you do the show?”
“Why do you need me? Surely, they don’t need all five guys to show up for this reunion thing? Tell them I died.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“If it would get you off my ass, then yeah, I’d probably go out to film the stupid thing and then hasta la vista!”
“So tell her. Set yourself free, man! Tell Shannon the truth and then ask her to join you in LA for the show. Fly her kids out, too. How many does she have?”
“Three—triplets, actually.”
“Jesus.”
“Cutest damned kids you’ll ever see.” Dean wondered at the pride in his voice. Where did that come from?
“Yeah, well I’m looking at the cutest kid in the world right now, and his purple face is telling me I’ve got to cut this call short. Daddy’s got some nasty business to attend to.”
“You have fun with that. Be happy you only have to change one at a time.”
“Dean? I’m serious. Bring her out to meet us. She sounds like a damned decent lady and you deserve someone like that in your life. Love you, man.”
He ended the call and shoved the phone deep in his pocket. Like it was that simple. Things were complicated now. They were lovers. She’d gone to him thinking she knew everything there was to know about him. She’d trusted him with all of her. If she found out now, she’d feel betrayed on a whole new level.
Dean went back to pacing the floor. Shannon. He wanted to be the man she thought she knew. He wanted to be honorable, honest, and forthright. But he also wanted to be hers. He wanted her to need him. He wanted her to love him. Every day he got to spend with her, it was getting harder and harder to keep this from her.
Toby was right. He needed to tell her the truth. His Shannon wouldn’t turn weird just because she found out he was a celebrity has-been. And if she did turn out to be a gold digger, then it was better that he found out before it was too late, right? Before he lost his heart. Right… Who was he kidding? It was way too late for that.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
She was going to die. Shannon clutched the box of tissues to her chest and stumbled down the hallway. Well, that was only if she were really lucky. Sometime in the night she had started to feel bad—really bad. Now she had to face the truth: she had the flu.
The kids had gotten up at 6 o’clock, full of energy and ready to start their days’ adventures. She’d considered letting them fix their own breakfasts, but three five-year-olds in the kitchen sounded like way too much of a disaster in the making. So she’d gotten out of bed.
Now she was struggling with all she had just to make it until she could get back to bed. Ms. Sheffield was bringing a group of guests out tomorrow morning. Shannon had a to do list she’d been adding to for days. She had hours of work ahead of her and she couldn’t even get her achy body out of her pajamas. She blew her nose into a tissue and leaned against the wall. She wouldn’t cry.
“Mommy, can we go out and play?” Brian hopped up and down, forcing Shannon to squeeze her eyes shut against the havoc his energy was wreaking on her equilibrium.
“I was hoping I could get a few helpers at the big house today. Mommy’s not feeling well.”
Brian stopped hopping and slumped. He dragged his feet and sighed dramatically.
“Can we just play for a few minutes? Then we’ll help. Pinky swear.”
Shannon waved him outside, trying for a shaky smile. “No one gets hurt today—you hear me? I’m too sick to drive you to the hospital.” She shook her head when her order was met with giggles. They think I’m kidding.
Shoving her feet into a pair of bright pink flip-flops, Shannon headed for the big house—in her pajamas. Who was she going to run into? Ms. Sheffield wouldn’t be around until the next day.
She got the cleaning supplies out of the huge utility closet in the garage. She groaned, thinking about all the windows that needed cleaning and how badly her whole body already hurt. How was she going to raise her arms above her head when she could barely shuffle across the lawn to get to the house?
Shannon took a few deep, slow breaths. The aching in her head was so bad she was afraid she was going to vomit. But then she’d have to clean it up. So that just wasn’t going to happen. Oh, she really didn’t have time for this!
Honking into a tissue, she shoved it back down into her pocket. Shannon turned a bleary gaze to the window. She knew the triplets were out there—she’d heard them just a few minutes ago. But where had they gone? She pushed herself away from the windowsill and turned back to the vacuum. She’d go round up her escapees after she finished vacuuming the downstairs.
She was halfway through the living room when she heard the children over the sound of the vacuum. She shut it off and turned, ready to chastise them for tracking dirt in on their sneakers. All three children stood proudly, pushing Dean to the forefront of their little group.
“You said you needed helpers ’cause you weren’t feeling well. So we went and got Dean.” Brian beamed.
Shannon looked from her own bedraggled bedhead and rumpled pajamas to Dean’s tight white t-shirt and navy cargo shorts. She burst out crying. Dean knelt down and whispered something to the kids, who turned and filed out of the room. Then he hurried over to Shannon, who stood blubbering in the center of the room, her teeth chattering. He placed a cool hand on her forehead and silently swore.
“God, baby, you are burning up. What the hell are you doing over here? You should be in bed.”
“Can’t. Too much to do.” She hugged herself tightly, trying to keep from biting her tongue when she couldn’t control the shivering.
“You’re no good to anyone like this. You can’t do everything. In fact, today, you can’t do anything.” He placed a finger over her lips when she started to protest. “That’s an order.”
He lifted her in his arms like she didn’t weigh a thing and carried her to the couch. Shannon lifted her head off the pillow he’d placed beneath her and tried to get up. A wave of vicious dizziness had her stomach pitching dangerously and she decided it wouldn’t be in her best interest to fight him.
“You tell me what needs to be done and the trips and I will do it. You will stay here and rest. Get some sleep if you can.” He covered her with a homemade afghan he’d found draped on the couch.
Shannon nodded weakly.
“I have a list on the kitchen table. The kids know where all the supplies are kept.” She sniffled. “Dean, I’m so sorry.”
“For what? Getting sick? I highly doubt you did it on purpose.” He dropped a kiss on her fevered brow and started to leave the room.
“Do you need me to bring a bucket?”
“No, I’ll be okay.” Mortification added to the bright flush on her cheeks. Of all people to have to see her like this.
Shannon drifted in and out of sleep, roused by the occasional bang of a cupboard or the muffled giggle of one of the children. She alternated between kicking off the blanket because she was too warm and hauling it back over her when the chills began anew. Dean had left a box of tissues within reach and she was quickly filling the small wastebasket with crumpled tissues.
It was lunchtime and she really needed to get up and fix something at the cottage for the triplets. She had just managed to stand and fold the blanket on the couch when Dean walked in. He shook his head when he saw she’d disobeyed orders.
“Sit down. As soon as I finish vacuuming this room we’ll be done.”
“But my list?” she sputtered.
“Work goes fast when you split it between four people. I imagine it takes a lot longer when you insist on doing it all yourself.” He lifted a brow and sent her a pointed stare.
“It’s my job,” she moaned. “Who am I going to ask for help?”
“I bet this job doesn’t come with benefits like vacation or sick days, does it?” He frowned.
Dean turned on the vacuum and made short work of the rest of the carpet. Shannon sat obediently on the couch, lifting her feet when he needed to vacuum underneath them. When he was done, he returned the vacuum to the utility closet, came back for his patient, and carried her all the way back to the cottage, the children leading the way. Shannon was too miserably sick to argue.
• • •
The aching in her head had eased off enough to where she was no longer so worried she’d hurl all over her houseguest. She sat up in bed, propped up against pillows, sipping weak tea. She’d tried to have Dean drop her off on the couch but he insisted she be put straight to bed. His only concession was to let her remain sitting, so she could pretend, at least, that she was somewhat involved in the care of her children and household.
Giggles and chatter reached her ears from the kitchen. It was lunchtime, but what that consisted of today, Shannon had no idea. All Dean had to do was look in the fridge or the pantry for any number of easy-to-make choices. She tried to keep lots of healthy things on hand. It’s possible they could be eating their way through a bag of potato chips, but she had to trust that Dean would be more responsible than that.
It killed her to just sit here and do nothing. She was a doer. She worked through pain and illnesses. She didn’t have any choice. She’d never had help. This was hard for her, humbling. And yet she knew her kids were in good hands. She could trust Dean to help out while she was sick. She was almost starting to believe she could trust him to stick around no matter what. Maybe the fever was making her delirious.
“I brought some crackers and broth. Wasn’t sure you were up to anything more filling, but I can fix you something if you’d like.”
Dean carried a tray into the room, followed by the children. They were unusually subdued. Shannon glanced from them to Dean, frowning slightly.
He shrugged a shoulder and flashed her a grin. “I told them they could come with me if they promised not to jump up and attack you in bed. It might jiggle your stomach too much and make you throw up. And then they’d have to clean it up.”
Shannon smiled at the horrified looks on all three faces. She whispered a “thank you” to Dean and patted the bed gently.
“I’d love some company as long as you can sit gently.”
The triplets’ whole demeanor changed when they were told they could stay and visit. With huge grins and exaggerated care, they climbed onto the bed and gave their mother careful kisses. She closed her eyes and breathed in the scent of her sweet babies.
Dean was still standing beside the bed and Shannon tamped down an unbidden thrill that he was in her bedroom. She swore the man really must be able to read minds because, when she looked up at him, he winked. Cheeky!
“Mommy, we had quesadillas for lunch. Mr. Dean cooked ’em for us.”
“An’ he let us sprinkle the cheese on.”
“We wanted lemonade but he told us we had to have milk, ’cause it makes your bones and teeth strong.”
“Well, I guess you don’t need your old mother today, then. Mr. Dean is taking good care of you.”
“Yeah, but we said we needed hugs and he said he thought you probably needed some right back.”
“He was very right about that.”
Shannon reached her arms around until she had each child within her grasp. She laid a kiss on each temple, smoothing back their bangs and checking foreheads to make sure that no one was coming down with what she had. When she was satisfied that they were all well, she let them go, shooing them off the bed so Dean could set the lunch tray down.
Having assured themselves that their mom was just sick but would be back to herself in no time, the kids dashed from the room. Off to the next adventure. Dean set the tray across Shannon’s lap and lowered himself to the bed beside her.
“So the preferred method for gauging a fever is this?” He leaned in and swept her hair from her forehead, his lips feather light against her skin.
“You shouldn’t. I don’t want you to get sick.” She lowered her head to duck out of his reach.
“But you’d take care of me, right?”
“Of course!” Wow, that came out a little too forcefully. Shannon squirmed from embarrassment.
“That makes me very happy to hear.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and drew her close enough to drop a kiss on the crown of her head.
He slipped off the bed and gave his patient an assessing gaze. She straightened her back and tried to give him a cheerful smile. He shook his head and backed toward the door.
