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“I didn’t realize you were still here, Megan,” Tiffany said, “but I thought I’d check because you usually tell me when you’re leaving.” Then glancing from Stephen back to her, she added, “Didn’t you say your dinner was at seven?”
Megan closed her eyes. She’d almost forgotten about her business dinner!
Opening her eyes again, she looked at her watch. It was nearing six. She’d have to hurry.
Tiffany looked from her to Stephen, and evidently judging that she’d walked in on a heated conversation, she took a step back. “I left Jade in the kitchen. Call me if you need anything.”
When the sitter had retreated, Megan looked back at Stephen. “I have a business dinner in a little over an hour to court a potential new client. That’s why Tiffany came over.”
She’d made an exception to her rule not to let business intrude on her weekends with Jade because Conrad had asked her for a favor. She was supposed to meet Conrad and the potential client at a downtown Miami restaurant—and she wasn’t even dressed yet.
Stephen looked at her coldly. “I’m giving you until Monday to make up your mind. And I’m only giving you that amount of time because I know you’re scheduled to come by the Garrison Grand and we can talk then without having Jade around.” He paused. “You already got four years.”
Megan watched then as Stephen strode to the front door and slammed out of her house.
But not out of her life, she thought with a pang.
Five
The Mediterranean-style Garrison estate in Bal Harbour should have felt like home, but it didn’t.
Still, Stephen reflected, even now with John Garrison gone, and his extramarital affair and its illegitimate child exposed, not to mention Bonita’s heavy drinking, they all still felt obliged to maintain the illusion of a happy family gathering over Sunday dinner.
Yet, it was rare for all the Garrison siblings to be present, and tonight was no exception.
Stephen looked around the room. Bonita sat at the head of the dining room table, and his younger brother, Adam, and younger sister, Brooke, sat across from him.
Missing were Parker and Anna, and Brooke’s twin, Brittany. Stephen figured the newlyweds had better things to do, lucky dogs. And since Brittany had recently decided she was in love with Emilio Jefferies, she preferred avoiding tense family dinners.
Now, as they chewed dinner mostly in silence, Stephen reflected on how an outsider might perceive tonight’s gathering.
Valuable artwork hung on one wall, and in front of the opposite wall sat a china closet displaying various crystal pieces. Potted ferns sat in two corners of the room, and Greek columns flanked an arched entry. Overhead, a magnificent chandelier hung from a painted domed ceiling.
The room, like the rest of the estate, was majestic—and cold as ice.
His gaze came back to his family. Better to bite the bullet, he thought grimly.
“I just found out I have an illegitimate child,” he announced into the silence.
Brooke gasped, and Adam froze.
Bonita stopped in midmotion, her wineglass halfway to her lips.
Given the shock waves that the discovery of John Garrison’s illegitimate child had recently sent through the family, he had no illusions about how his news would be received.
Suddenly Bonita gave a raucous laugh. “Just like your father, except you don’t have a wife to trick.”
He ignored the outburst, though it was uncharacteristic. He was the only one of the Garrison off-spring that his mother didn’t criticize, but he knew his news was a bombshell. “There’s a three-year-old little girl named Jade.”
“How?” Adam asked, raising the question he knew must be in everyone’s mind.
He held his brother’s gaze. “I had a relationship with her mother, Megan Simmons, when she did some interior design work at Garrison headquarters.”
Bonita shook her head. “Just like your damned father!”
He heard the note of betrayal in his mother’s tone, and felt his face tighten. “I’m planning on publicly acknowledging Jade as my daughter as soon as possible.”
And marrying Megan, he added silently, if he got his way. He planned to do everything in his power to get his way.
Bonita’s hand came down, her glass hitting the table with a thud and sending red wine across the white tablecloth. “You will do no such thing, do you hear me? I will not have the child of another tramp in this family! I will not tolerate another slut getting her hands on the Garrison fortune!”
He faced his mother. “You have no say in the matter,” he ground out.
“I’m disappointed in you, Stephen,” Bonita said, her voice frigid despite her inebriated state. “First your father betrays this family, then you do. Don’t we have enough turmoil to deal with?”
In fact, he’d been thinking the same thing, but he rebelled at putting Megan in the same category as his father’s faithlessness.
His fling with Megan may have been careless, but it sure as hell hadn’t amounted to marital infidelity.
And it wasn’t the fact that he had fathered a child out of wedlock that bothered him. It was having a child and not acknowledging her for years that, for him, created uncomfortable parallels with his father.
The longtime housekeeper, Lisette, appeared in the archway, no doubt having heard raised voices.
Bonita knocked a wine bottle to the floor, sending more wine, as well as glass this time, everywhere. Then she rose unsteadily to her feet.
Stephen stood, and Adam did the same.
Immediately, Lisette moved to Bonita’s side. “Let me help you, Mrs. Garrison.”
Stephen watched, along with Adam and Brooke, as Lisette helped Bonita from the room.
His hands bunched at his sides. He figured Lisette, as well as the missing Garrison family members, would find out soon enough what caused tonight’s ruckus.
“Well, another rockin’ Garrison family dinner!” Adam said, then picked up his glass and raised it in a mock salute before taking a swallow.
“Why don’t we continue this conversation outside on the patio where the wet bar is?” he said to Adam and Brooke. Outside, they would be away from any prying eyes and open ears among the household staff. “We can let the staff clean up in here.”
They’d almost finished with dinner, anyway. He looked down at the spilled wine and broken glass in distaste.
“Sorry,” Brooke demurred. “I think I’ll pass.”
Stephen noticed his sister continued to look pale.
“Is something wrong?” he asked. “Did my news shock you that much?”
“N-no,” she stammered.
He searched her face. “You look upset.”
“I’m concerned about Mother’s drinking.” She lowered her voice. “Did you notice she drank almost a full bottle of wine at dinner—before she spilled the rest?”
Yeah, he had, and he hated to think how much his mother had imbibed before dinner.
Still, he had to admit that sometimes he’d felt the need for a fortifying drink before a Garrison family dinner.
They’d all moved to one end of the dining room, and he gently chucked Brooke under the chin. “Don’t worry, kid. Let our mother deal with her own problems. But if it makes you feel better, I’m planning on having a talk with her.”
Fat lot of good it would do, but he’d try. For some reason, today’s dinner aside, Bonita usually held her tongue with him, and he figured that gave him some leverage. He’d also have to make clear that he wouldn’t tolerate his mother taking any more cheap shots at Megan.
After he and Adam had said goodbye to Brooke and had retreated outdoors to the patio, he went to the marble-topped wet bar to pour himself a Scotch on the rocks.
The patio was dominated by an Olympic-size pool and lined with queen palms that swayed in the cool breeze. There was an unobstructed view of the ocean.
Their surroundings were serene, which made the recent tumult inside the mansion seem all the more out of place.
“Drink?” he asked Adam, who’d taken a seat on one of the bar stools.
“Booker’s Bourbon, thanks.”
From there, the conversation quickly moved to local business and politics. By an unspoken agreement, he and Adam put the ugly scene inside behind them as quickly as possible.
“The president of the Miami Business Council is retiring next year,” Stephen found himself observing after several minutes.
“Yeah, I know,” Adam said. “I’ve been thinking of running to be his replacement.”
Stephen shook his head. “The Business Council wants to uphold a certain image. Only married men have ever won election.” He raised his glass and took a sip of his drink. “And you and I, little brother, are far from the image they want.”
He and his brothers had well-earned reputations as players. Except now, Parker was married, and he’d probably be heading the same way soon, too, though he didn’t feel the need to share that news with Adam just yet.
“So, what are you going to do about Jade? I’d like to meet her.” Adam paused. “I’m an uncle, and I didn’t even know it!”
“Try finding out that three years ago you became a father,” Stephen replied ruefully. “And don’t worry, you’ll get to meet her.”
All the Garrisons would, even if he had to move heaven and earth to make it happen.
His brows snapped together as he recalled Megan’s accusation that he’d cheated. He could barely remember the night she’d referred to, or the woman who may or may not have tried to come on to him. But he knew he’d never two-timed anyone.
Still, he’d have to jog his memory somehow about the night she was talking about. It infuriated him even now that she had continued to be skeptical even in the face of his denial.
“How did you feel when you found out you had a child?” Adam asked, curiosity lacing his words.
Stephen considered his brother’s question. As he looked out at the water, Megan’s words came back to him. You wouldn’t be thrilled to discover I was pregnant.
Four years ago, he’d been happy to live in the moment. Yes, he’d given a passing thought to the fact that Megan was the one woman he could settle down with, but he hadn’t taken any concrete steps in that direction. The truth was he’d have been blown away to discover he was a father.
Now, though, he thought about the little girl he’d seen yesterday. She looked like him, and he’d felt an instant connection.
He knew he wanted to be a father to Jade.
“It was unbelievable,” he said, his gaze moving from the ocean to his brother. “She looks just like a Garrison, and the protectiveness automatically kicked in.”
In fact, he was mad as hell at being shortchanged on the past three years.
“I’ve heard having a daughter changes everything for guys,” Adam commented. “Suddenly you can’t look at women the same way.”
Tell me about it, Stephen thought, his mind traveling over all the women who’d blended into his past. Adam was right. He wouldn’t want Jade to grow up and fall for the kind of smooth operator he’d been for most of his adult life.
“So, you’re going to publicly acknowledge her?” Adam shook his head doubtfully. “I hope you know what you’re getting into. As much as I hate echoing our mother, what do you know about Megan Simmons?”
“Enough,” he said shortly.
“I remember meeting her when you dated four years ago,” Adam went on. “Think she’s one of those women who believes getting knocked up by a rich guy is like hitting the jackpot?”
“Shut up, Adam.”
“No, really,” his brother pressed.
“You don’t know anything about it. She was hiding the kid’s existence from me. I found out accidentally when I showed up at her house unannounced.”
Adam whistled. “Well, that puts a different spin on things. I won’t bother asking why you showed up at her house without an invitation.” His brother gave him a sly look. “Still carrying a torch?”
“Shut up,” he said, and downed some more of his drink.
It was late Sunday afternoon, and she and Anna Cross—no, Anna Garrison now, Megan corrected herself—sat at her dinette table enjoying some coffee and sinfully good Tres Leches cake.
Jade was playing in the living room, where they could hear and sometimes see her.
The house was big enough for Jade to play in, but small enough for just two people. Megan was glad now she’d taken up Anna’s lease when she’d moved back to Miami. At the time, Anna had no longer needed the house in Coral Gables because she was marrying Parker Garrison.
Jade’s uncle.
Of course, that meant Anna was Jade’s aunt.
She really needed to ’fess up, Megan thought, looking at her friend.
She steeled herself and took a deep breath. “I have something to tell you.”
“Mmm?” Anna responded, cutting off another piece of cake with her fork. “I shouldn’t, but this is so—so yummy—”
“Jade is a Garrison.”
Anna stilled for a moment, then her fork clattered against her plate. “What?”
Anna stared at her in disbelief, a dozen questions flitting across her face.
Megan rubbed clammy hands against her shorts. “Before you came to Miami four years ago, I dated Stephen Garrison.”
“Stephen—?”
