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Olivia held her breath, but no one called him on the obvious cover-up. Then Tony began pointing out people, too many of them for Olivia to keep straight, though she was usually very good with names and faces. The men seemed inclined to leave her be, their interest caught by a football game someone had turned on. Other than a wave in her direction when Tony introduced her, and a few ribald comments to Tony and the kind of business he conducted, they stayed on or near the family-room couch and the large-screen television.
The women, however, hovered. They were anxious to talk to her, and Tony, with little more than an apologetic glance, abandoned her when the men called him to watch a play. Sue, Tony’s mother, invited her to join the women and children in the kitchen.
To Olivia’s surprise, no one was the least bit unpleasant, despite what had happened. “I’m sorry if we’ve upset your plans,” Sue said. “Tony, of course, didn’t know we’d planned a party. And we didn’t know Tony had made other arrangements.”
Tony’s sister, Kate, and sister-in-law, Lisa, both chuckled. Kate said, “If you could have seen his face! Well, we certainly did surprise him.”
Olivia couldn’t help but smile. Both women were very adept at keeping busy in the kitchen, and dodging the kids who ran in and out. “It was rather awkward.”
Lisa laughed. “For us, too. Of course, John is just like Tony, and never lets a chance go by to goad his brother.”
“And they both goad me. Endlessly!” Kate shook her head. “But now I have enough ammunition to twit Tony for a good month.”
Olivia decided, even though their comments weren’t malicious, it was time to change the subject. She didn’t want to have to explain her business with Tony. “Could I help you do something?”
Sue was arranging ham slices on a platter, Kate was putting glasses and napkins on a tray, and Lisa was trying to balance a tiny infant in one arm and dish up potato salad with the other. She turned with a relieved smile when Olivia made her offer.
“If you wouldn’t mind holding the baby, that would be a big help.”
Olivia balked. “I, uh, how about I help with the food instead? I’ve never held an infant before.”
“Piece of cake, believe me. And he’s such a good baby, he won’t give you any problems.”
Before Olivia could form another denial, the baby was nestled in her arms. His mother had wrapped him in a soft blue blanket, and other than one tiny hand and a small, pink face, the child was completely covered. Olivia cuddled him carefully when he squirmed, settling himself with a small sigh that parted his pursed lips and made Olivia smile.
She felt a pain in her chest that had nothing to do with physical ailments and everything to do with a breaking heart.
One by one, the women left the kitchen to carry the trays into the dining room, and Olivia welcomed the privacy. She couldn’t recall ever holding such a small baby before, and her curiosity was extreme. She carefully pushed the blanket back from the baby’s head, then rubbed her cheek against his crown. So soft, she thought, wondering at the silky cap of hair. And the scents. Never had she smelled anything so sweet, so touching, as a baby. She wanted to breathe his scent all day. She had her nose close to him, gently nuzzling him, when Tony walked in.
“What are you doing?”
Olivia jerked at the alarm in his tone. She didn’t have time to answer him, though, not that she would have told him she was smelling the baby. Lisa came back in then and thanked her. “I’ll put him in his crib now that the other kids are all sitting down to eat. I worry when they’re all running around that they’ll wake him up. You know how kids are.”
Olivia didn’t know, but she could see Tony hadn’t liked her holding the baby. Lisa left the room, and Tony whispered, “Do you think it’s a good idea for you to do that?”
Olivia knew exactly what he meant. He was concerned she’d start wanting a baby herself if she held one. She could have told him it was too late for that worry, that it didn’t matter. She could want forever and never get what she wished. At least, she couldn’t get a baby. Now passion, it seemed Tony was ready to give her that in huge doses. What she’d felt during the ride and in his garage…It was almost everything she’d ever wanted with a man. Everything but the real emotion. Everything but love.
It angered her that he was pushing her and worrying about something that would never be, but she held in her words of resentment and instead, she shrugged. “Would you have rather I’d refused? What excuse would I give?”
He tunneled his fingers through his hair, then looked toward the dining room. “Come on. They’re waiting for me to eat.”
“This is going to be impossible, isn’t it, Tony?”
“No. Everything’s fine.”
He didn’t sound at all convincing, and Olivia had to wonder if John or Kate had already been teasing him. When they entered the dining room, Olivia looked around. She hadn’t had the chance to actually see the inside of Tony’s house, but now that she could look, she wasn’t at all surprised. Everything, every dish, every piece of furniture, the wallpaper, all showed excellent taste, but without the blatant stamp of wealth. Tony never flaunted his financial success, and other than the size of the sprawling house, it showed only a sense of comfort and functional ease.
The house was very open. Each room seemed to flow into the next, and there were windows everywhere. The furniture was all highly polished mahogany. As little Maggie, who Olivia guessed to be around three, walked to her seat with one hand on the buffet, she left small smudge marks in her wake. Tony only scooped her up and tossed her in the air. The little girl giggled, wrapped her pudgy arms around Tony’s neck and planted a very wet kiss on the side of his nose. He pretended to chew on her belly, then sat her in her booster seat and took his own chair next to Olivia. The rest of the children yelled for his attention.
The pain in her chest intensified.
She so desperately wanted this one sumptuous, sensuous affair. The whole purpose was to help her fill a void, because her life was destined to be a lonely one, without children and without a man who loved her. But she was getting more than she bargained for. She hadn’t wanted to be shown all she was missing, to find more voids, to have firsthand knowledge of what could never be hers.
As she watched Tony laugh and play with the children, she knew it was too late for her. Perhaps this would yet turn out to be the wild fling she’d anticipated, but it would also leave her lonelier than ever before.
Dinner was a wonderful, riotous affair with children laughing, grown-ups talking and food being continuously resupplied. The kids quickly realized Olivia was a new face and, therefore, easy to entertain. Despite her growing melancholy, she laughed at their antics, listened to their stories, and when one child came over and tugged on her skirt, she didn’t even flinch over the stain left behind. The child wanted to be lifted, and Olivia obliged. But the small hand was still holding her skirt, and when the child went up, so did her hem.
She hurried to right herself, pushing her skirt back down. But it was obvious everyone had seen the top of her stocking and the paler strip of flesh on her upper thigh. John grinned, Lisa gave him a playful smack to keep him from speaking, and Sue quickly began talking about Christmas shopping.
Olivia glanced at Tony and saw he had his eyes closed, looking close to prayer. Despite his brother’s chuckles, it took him a few moments to collect his control. And then he sent Olivia a smile that made promises and threats at the same time.
After that, Tony did his best to deflect the kids from her. Olivia understood his reasoning, but no one else did. And all in all, everyone accepted her. They attempted to make her a part of their family, and for the short while it could last, Olivia loved it. Every few minutes, someone stood to check on the sleeping infant, whose crib they could see in the family room through the archway. The men took more turns than the women did, and Olivia saw that Tony, more than anyone, was interested in peeking in on the little one.
Olivia was being smothered by the sense of familial camaraderie. As welcoming as they all were, she felt like an interloper. And when she spied the pile of gaily wrapped birthday presents in the corner, she knew she couldn’t stay.
She excused herself, asking directions to the powder room, then quickly located a phone. It happened to be in Tony’s bedroom, or so she assumed judging from the open closet door and the lingering scent of his cologne…and his body. Again, she found herself breathing deeply, then shook her head and forced her mind to clear. She perched on the side of the bed to call for a cab.
She was still sitting there minutes later when Tony found her.
CHAPTER FOUR
TONY SLIPPED INTO THE room and quietly closed the door. Olivia looked up and their gazes touched, hers wide, his narrowed. He crossed his arms over his chest and kept his voice very low. “Hiding?”
“What do you think?”
“No. I don’t think you’d hide. So what are you doing?”
Olivia came to her feet, feeling like a fool, like a sneaky fool. But she refused to be intimidated. “I called a cab. I think it’s past time I went home.”
Tony didn’t say anything at first, just leaned back against the door. Then he closed his eyes and groaned. “You’re going to make me wait another day, aren’t you, Olivia?”
Her heartbeat jumped at the husky way he said that, and at the restrained hunger she heard in his tone. “This…this isn’t the right time, Tony. You know that. Right now, I feel equal parts ridiculous and embarrassed.”
His gaze pinned her, hot and intent. “I could make you forget your hesitation real fast, honey.”
I’ll just bet you could. It wasn’t easy, but Olivia shook her head. “If I leave now, they might not suspect anything—”
“Olivia, they saw me kissing your breast. I think they’re already a bit suspicious.”
She felt the blood pound in her veins, but kept her gaze steady. “You weren’t kissing my breast.”
“I wanted to be.”
Olivia curled her hands into fists and tried to calm her breathing. “They might decide that was just a temporary loss of control if I leave now. If I stay until they’re all gone, they’ll assume we’re spending the night together, and that’s what we wanted to avoid.” She gentled her tone and asked, “No speculation, no gossip. No scandals. Remember?”
“Yeah, but—”
A knock sounded at the door, and John’s jovial voice called out, “Everything okay in there?”
Tony closed his eyes, a look of annoyance etched in his features. “I’m going to kill him.”
Olivia thought she might help.
“We’ll be out in just a second, John. And if you dare knock on the damn door again, I’m going to knock on you.”
“Hey! I just wanted to tell you they’re ready to cut the cake.”
“So you told me. Now disappear, will you?”
Olivia rubbed her forehead, knowing she’d fumbled again, that she’d only made matters worse. Good grief, Tony’s brother was fetching them from the bedroom. “How that man produced such a beautiful, sweet baby, I don’t know.”
To her surprise, Tony laughed. “John’s all right. Believe me, if he understood the situation, he wouldn’t be hassling me.”
“No?”
Tony slowly shook his head, then went to her and pulled her against his chest. “No. He’d be sympathetic as hell.” He tilted her head back and growled, “I want you, Olivia.”
Her stomach curled at his words. “Tomorrow?”
Tony placed damp kisses across her cheek, her throat. He touched the corner of her mouth with his tongue. “Early? You’re not going to make me wait until evening, are you?”
Olivia thought she might agree to anything with him stroking her back and kissing her so softly. “Where?”
“Hell, I don’t know. But I’ll think of something before morning, okay? I’ll pick you up. About ten o’clock?”
“That’ll be fine.” She forced herself to forget how sensual and romantic everything seemed with Tony, and to concentrate on their purpose. She had to keep in mind that this was temporary, that Tony didn’t really want her, not for keeps. He only wanted to use her, just as she would use him. “I don’t want you to worry, Tony. We still have time. I’m supposed to be very fertile for the next couple of days.”
She’d barely finished with the words before he was giving her a real kiss, his tongue moving against her own, his teeth nipping. It was a kiss meant to last her through the night. Unfortunately she could still feel the heat in her cheeks when she was forced to walk back into the dining room. She was grateful that the lights had been turned out, and the candles on the cake were lit. She saw John standing by the light switch and knew he was responsible for the darkness. John gave Tony a wink, and Olivia decided he might not be so bad after all.
Kate’s two girls, Angie and Allison, ages four and five, fought over who could sing the loudest during the requisite “Happy Birthday,” and John’s son, six-year-old Luke, wanted to cut and serve the cake. Though Olivia explained that she had to leave, they all insisted she eat a piece of cake first and enjoy a scoop of ice cream. Olivia couldn’t remember the last time she’d had, or attended, a birthday party. It might have been fun today if she’d actually been a part of it, rather than a reluctant intruder.
She didn’t want anyone to know she’d called a cab. She thought it might seem less awkward if everyone thought she was driving herself home, so she had her coat on and her purse in her hand when she saw the cab’s lights coming down the long driveway. To her surprise, the kids all wanted to give her hugs goodbye, the parents all uttered enthusiastic wishes to see her again soon, and to her chagrin, Tony’s mother invited her to Thanksgiving dinner. Olivia muttered a lame, “Thank you, but I’ll have to see,” along with something about a busy schedule, and then she rushed out the door, wanting only to escape the onslaught of emotions. Tony caught her on the last step of the porch.
“I’m sorry, Olivia. I know this wasn’t easy for you.” He glanced at the cab and cursed. “I should be driving you home.”
“I don’t mind the cab, Tony, and you can’t very well leave your own birthday party.”
He reached for his wallet, and she narrowed her eyes. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“At least let me pay for the cab—”
“Absolutely not and I won’t hear another word on it.” She used her most inflexible tone, the one that got contracts altered and had suppliers promising early deliveries. “I’m not your responsibility.”
His sigh was long and filled with irritation. “Will you do me a favor then, and at least call me when you get home?”
Olivia stared. She was used to taking care of herself and his request seemed more than absurd. “Why?”
“So I know you made it home okay.”
“Tony, you can’t start feeling responsible for me. That’s breaking one of the rules, isn’t it? I’m a big girl, and I know how to manage on my own. So don’t worry.”
“Call me.”
He was insistent, using his own invaluable, corporate tone, and she could tell by his stubborn stance he wasn’t going to relent. She didn’t think it was a good idea, but she gave in anyway. “Okay. But only this once.”
“Thanks.” He was grinning hugely.
“You’re not a gracious winner, Tony.”
“I haven’t won yet. Hell, I’ve still got a whole room full of relatives who are going to burst with rapid-fire questions as soon as I step back inside. Now that you’re gone and therefore can’t be offended, they’ll revert to their normal unrestrained selves.”
She knew he was teasing, knew he was very close to his family, and for that reason she suffered not a single twinge of guilt for leaving him to his fate. She stepped into the cab, and Tony came to lean inside, ignoring the cabdriver and giving her a quick kiss.
“Tomorrow, Olivia. Then I’ll win.”
He was taunting her, but she only grinned. It was in her nature to give as good as she got, so when he started to pull away, she caught his neck and drew him back for another kiss, this one much longer and hotter than the first. And while he was trying to catch his breath, she whispered, “We’ll both win.”
Tony chuckled. But as he stepped away from the cab, they both looked up. And there at the front door, huddled together as if for a kindergarten class picture, stood all of Tony’s family. And even with only the moon for light, Olivia could see the wide grins on all their faces.
TONY GLANCED AT THE CLOCK, but it was only seven in the morning, and he had no real reason to get up, not when he wouldn’t be seeing Olivia until ten. So he lingered in bed, thinking about her, about all that had happened the night before. Her vulnerability around his family stirred feelings he didn’t want to acknowledge—especially when concentrating on the lust she engendered was so much more satisfying.
Not one single minute had passed during the night when he could completely put Olivia and her allure from his mind. It was ridiculous, but he wanted her more now than he’d ever wanted any woman. Of course, she was so different from any other woman he knew. She made demands, but she also gave freely of herself. She was a veritable shark whenever they did business, but she ran her business fairly, and with a generous hand toward her workers. It was a belief he subscribed to: Treat your employees honestly, and you get honesty and loyalty in return.
They actually had a lot in common.
And yet there was a multitude of reasons why he couldn’t get overly involved with her. The very things he admired about her made her most unsuitable for an emotional relationship. He wanted a baby, pure and simple, someone to love him, and someone he could love without restrictions or qualifications. The baby would be his, only his, and Tony planned to smother the child with all the love he had inside him.
Olivia wanted a thriving business. She’d admitted she had no desire, no time for a family. She’d agreed to have his baby as part of a business deal, and while her agreement thrilled him, it also reemphasized the fact that business was still her main objective in life, while a baby was now his. He’d have to do his best to remember that.
The house was chilly when he finally rose and went to put on coffee. Naked except for a pair of snug cotton boxers, he felt the gooseflesh rise on his arms, but he ignored it. He needed a little cooling off if he was to deal with Olivia in a rational way.
He went into the bathroom and splashed water over his beard-rough face, then brushed his teeth while he waited for the coffee. Today, he thought, staring at his own contemplative expression in the mirror, he would get this business with Olivia back on an even keel. No more mingling with family, no more seeing her with a baby cuddled in her arms and an expression on her face that tore at his guts. He would view her with a detached eye and a reminder in his brain that she was a means to an end. They’d made an agreement, and it could be nothing more.
Not if he expected to escape this ordeal completely intact, with his heart whole and his mind sane.
He’d just poured his first cup of coffee when the doorbell rang. Padding barefoot into the living room, he leaned down to peer through the peephole and saw Olivia standing on his doorstep. A quick glance at the clock showed it to be only seven forty-five, and his first thought was that she was here to cancel, that something had come up and she had to go out of town; it wasn’t uncommon in her business. Every muscle in his body protested.
He jerked the door open, forgetting for the moment that he wasn’t even close to being dressed. Olivia took a long moment to stare at his chest, then down the length of his body before she lifted her gaze to his face.
“You’re rather hairy, aren’t you?”
“I’ll shave.”
Her lips quirked in a quick grin. “Your chest?”
If it would keep her from canceling. He only shrugged.
Tentatively she reached out and touched him, laying her palm flat where his heart beat in unsteady cadence. She stroked him, feeling him, tangling her fingers in his body hair. With a breathless whisper, she said, “I like it.”
