Читать книгу Carrying The Greek Tycoon's Baby - Jennifer Faye - Страница 11

HAD HE BEEN STUNNED?

Was that why he’d ended the phone call so quickly?

Maybe he’d been in shock. He had said that they’d talk soon. What exactly did soon mean?

The next day Lea was still playing over her conversation with Xander. It had ended so abruptly that it startled her. She didn’t know what she’d been expecting, but it hadn’t been for him to become so quiet. Perhaps she’d been waiting for him to lob questions and accusations but none of that had come.

Did he outright not believe her? She knew that was always a possibility, but she just wanted to believe that Xander was more of a man than to shirk his responsibilities. Granted she didn’t know him that well, but she sensed he was a good guy—a man who cared for those closest to him—even if to the world he portrayed himself as a ruthless businessman. In private, he was a very different man. That much she was certain about.

Or the other possibility—the one that she was going with—was that she had absolutely blindsided him with the news of the baby. How could he not be shocked? She certainly had been. A baby was the last thing she’d had on her mind at the moment. Her priority had been trying to keep a roof over her head in the upcoming year.

She sighed, not about the baby but about the state of the island. She straightened up the papers on her office desk. She felt as though she were letting down her family, which was silly when you thought of it, because she didn’t know any of the people who had run the island before her. And her parents, well, they wanted nothing to do with the island. So perhaps she felt as though she were letting down herself.

When she first learned that she’d inherited this gorgeous island, she’d imagined swooping in here and making it the best—the most shiny, sought-after wedding destination. Instead she was patching holes, painting walls and duct-taping hoses. Half of the guest rooms were shut down due to one reason or another.

In addition, she’d had to reduce the staff. As a result, she’d had to take on additional responsibilities that took up any free time and had her falling into bed at night utterly exhausted.

She stood and moved out from behind her desk that still had a slew of unfinished tasks. A more urgent problem needed her attention. A leaking faucet. Thankfully her parents had had no gender bias when raising her. She used to assist her father with all sorts of tasks around the house—including plumbing.

Lea moved to the closet, opened the door and retrieved a red toolbox. She almost felt as though she needed a tool belt to sling around her waist—to give her that authentic fixer-lady look. She wondered what Xander would make of the look. A giggle rose in her throat as she imagined a horrified look on his handsome face.

Dressed in a loose T-shirt and a pair of old jean shorts that had the top button loosened to make room for her expanding midsection, she set off for the bungalow midway across the island. She hoped it was just a worn-out washer and nothing more serious. She had a big wedding this weekend. She couldn’t afford to lose yet another accommodation because there was nowhere else to house people unless she gave up her bungalow.

She’d just placed the toolbox in the golf cart when she heard the whoop-whoop of a helicopter. This couldn’t be good. They weren’t expecting any new guests today.

The people on the island either lived and worked there or were lingering guests from the past weekend’s wedding. There was also a couple celebrating their fiftieth anniversary. Some of their guests liked to return every year for their anniversary, sort of as a reminder of how it felt when their love had been so new, fresh and exciting.

She worried her bottom lip. Could it be a medical emergency? No. She would have been informed.

But as the warm breeze caressed her skin, she put a hand to her forehead, blocking the bright sunshine. She tilted her chin upward to watch the helicopter descend to the helipad not far from her office. Whoever this was, they weren’t a guest.

Her body tensed as the long seconds dragged out. She never knew it could take so long for a chopper to land. But she knew that in reality not much time had passed at all. It was just her anxiety that seemed to have slowed the world down as she waited to see what new problem awaited her.

And then the door to the helicopter opened. And...

The breath of anticipation hitched in her throat. And...

A man emerged from inside. His head was ducked, but he had dark hair. And his clothes appeared to be a business suit. Her heart plummeted to her tennis shoes. Could this be an attorney putting some sort of lien against the island as she wasn’t quite on top of all of her bills. She tried. But some months she had to pay some accounts and then the next month she paid others.

But as the man rushed away from the helipad, there was something familiar about him. She couldn’t put her finger on what exactly it was, but she sensed she knew him. And then as the man reached the steps leading away from the helipad, he lifted his head.

A breath hissed past Lea’s teeth. Xander. She blinked. He was still there and he was staring directly at her.

She sucked in a deep breath, pulling in her baby bump, but that only succeeded in making her ever-expanding breasts stick out even further. She immediately released the pent-up breath. There was no hiding that her body was changing.

What was he doing here? And then she realized that in her shock, she’d asked the most ridiculous question. He wasn’t here to see her—not like she’d dreamed about at night where they’d rushed into each other’s arms. No, he was here about her baby—their baby.

She’d only told him the news yesterday. She couldn’t believe he was standing in front of her. But he was looking a little out of sorts. His necktie was missing. His collar was loosened. He hadn’t shaved, leaving a dark shadow of stubble to highlight his squared jaw.

It was then that she noticed he wasn’t smiling as he made his way to her. If he wasn’t happy about the baby, why bother coming? It wasn’t like she’d placed any demands upon him. She wasn’t poor, even if the state of the island said otherwise. This land was worth a lot of money—he’d pointed that out to her. If the absolute worst happened, she could sell the island and live comfortably the rest of her life. But she would have to be desperate to sell her heritage. At this point, she wasn’t desperate. At least that was what she kept telling herself.

Hang in there. This is all going to work out.

She wondered if the pep speech was about the dire state of the island or about her impending meeting with Xander. She hadn’t moved since she’d watched him arrive. Normally she would have met a guest halfway, but not today—not with Xander frowning. She had to be strong and stand her ground. He could come to her.

When Xander finally stopped in front of her, she stood silently. Her stomach churned nervously. She hadn’t invited him here. It was up to him to decide how this conversation should go.

“I’m here.” He stared at her with tired eyes.

That’s it? That’s all he has to say?

She leveled her shoulders and tilted her chin upward. “I didn’t ask you to come. We could have handled this over the phone.”

“This is too serious for a phone call.”

But with a phone call, she would have been able to concentrate on the conversation instead of how he looked even sexier than she recalled. She fidgeted with the gemstone bracelet on her wrist before forcing her hands to remain still at her sides.

This conversation definitely would have gone smoother over the phone. As soon as she would have assured him that she wasn’t plotting a messy paternity or support lawsuit, they could have gotten back to their lives. Because she could do this parenting thing on her own. In fact, she was looking forward to being a mother.

When Lea noticed him staring expectantly at her, she said, “I thought you’d be busy with work.”

A definite note of incredulity clung to his voice. “You can’t just deliver a bombshell, over the phone no less, and expect me to do nothing.”

“What do you want to know?”

“How about for starters, are you sure the baby is mine?” His gaze narrowed as he stared at her as though by look alone he could ferret out the truth.

The fact that he would question her about something so important hurt—it hurt deeply. Apparently they didn’t know each other at all. The weekend they’d spent in each other’s company for every exquisite moment had meant more to her than him. So be it.

“Yes. I’m sure.” If he thought she was going to stand here in public to be interrogated, he was mistaken. “I have to go. I have an emergency.”

Without giving him a chance to respond, she turned back to the golf cart. She climbed inside and started it. She glanced up and was about to put her foot on the accelerator when she found him standing directly in her path, with his arms crossed over his broad chest and a definite frown on his face.

She sighed. “I don’t want to fight with you. In fact, I don’t want anything from you.”

“Then why call?”

Seriously? He had to ask that?

And then one of the staff started in their direction. The man was giving them a strange look as though trying to decide whether he should step in or not. She made a point of painting a friendly smile on her face and waving at her employee. The man smiled, nodded and kept moving.

Lea turned back to Xander. “Would you stop standing there like some Greek statue and get in?” When he didn’t move, she said, “Xander, don’t make a scene.”

Without a word, he climbed in beside her. His shoulder brushed up against hers, sending a wave of nervous energy racing through her body. It settled in her chest. As she breathed in his spicy aftershave, the heat in her chest gravitated southward to her core. Her back teeth ground together, refusing to give in to her body’s desires. That boat had sailed. It was out of the docks, out of the harbor, and was headed into open seas.