My Gigolo (28 page)

Despite her need to do something, anything, she couldn’t help but ask. “How did you get this number?”

“Gabe.”

“No, I mean the land line. No one uses my land line but…well, no one, really.”

He snorted. “I don’t like cell phones. Plus, if you’re anything like your sister, I refuse to be responsible for whatever song you’ve picked as your ring tone.”

She laughed, surprised she had one in her while worry ate at her. “She still has that kung fu fighting thing?”

“Would she ever change it?”

The laughter faded. “I hope not.”

“Me, too. If you find out anything before I do—”

“I’ll call. Ditto for you?”

“Ditto for me.”

She hung up and dug her cell back out of her pocket. Growing anger made her movements jerky, and she skipped past Jack’s number twice before managing to get the correct one. What had he done? Didn’t he know that beneath her hard exterior, Gabe was a scared and lonely little girl? Had her impression of him been so far off?

After three rings, she scowled and mentally prepared to leave a scathing message, but he finally picked up.

“What?”

Her eyebrows shot up. “I think that’s my question, buddy. Explain yourself.”

“Oh, so she’ll call you, but she won’t even answer the phone for me?”

“What are you talking about? Phil called me and told me Gabe is a walking corpse thanks to you. I thought I could trust you with her, Jack, so like I said: explain yourself.”

Some of his bluster must have gone out, because his voice was soft when he spoke again. “A walking corpse? Damn.”

“Tell me. Now.”

He heaved a sigh. “I don’t know what happened. I thought everything was perfect. I was trying to think of a way to tell her everything, and I really thought it would work out. She…seemed to like pretending to be my girlfriend. It was like a game.” He paused for so long that she tried to think of something to say to fill the gap. “But I guess it
was
a game, because when I told her I loved her, she locked up and kicked me out.”

She nearly dropped the phone. “You
what
?”

His laugh held a sharp edge of bitterness. “Yeah. I know. Trust me, I know. Hell, I thought she was too drunk to notice.”

“You got her drunk?”

He grunted. “Stick to the point. I don’t know what happened. Everything was going so damn well. She asked me to make love to her.” He cut himself off, and she could picture his blush. “Er…sorry. But she’d never asked for that before. She always wanted it so impersonal, you know? So I thought—”

She put a hand to her forehead and tried to rub away the impending headache. “Jack…”

“Yeah, I know.”

They both fell silent, and she wished she was still angry so she’d know what to do. But he hadn’t really done anything wrong. He’d just…miscalculated. Was it really over? She had so hoped—

“What will you do?”

Another bitter laugh. “She won’t pick up the phone. What the hell am I supposed to do? Charge down there and demand that she see me? You know her. She wouldn’t even bother slamming the door in my face. I fucked up.”

She really wished she was still mad at him. “It’s not over yet. It can’t be. She’s torn up over it, so she must feel something for you. You have to know that.”

“But what does it matter? She…I can’t…she just
won’t
.”

“Do you still want her?”

“Damn it, if I thought she’d do anything but kill me for it, I’d marry her.”

Her eyes widened. She’d had no idea he’d thought that far ahead. He really was serious.

“If it weren’t for her, I’d have never gotten out of the business. Never tried to finish my degree and get a real job. I’d probably have never talked to my dad again. She’s everything I ever wanted and she doesn’t even
care
.”

She heard something crash in the background and winced. She hoped he hadn’t broken anything important. “Calm down a minute. It’s pretty damn obvious she does care. She wouldn’t be pulling in like Phil says if she didn’t. But she’s scared of you now, too.”

“I didn’t do anything.”

“You did everything.” She sighed. “She had this nice, safe little situation where commitment wasn’t a possibility, and you blew it all to hell when you told her you loved her. She has to catch up, and it’ll probably take her a while because she’s so averse to commitment. You knew that going in.”

“Yeah, but it doesn’t help. What the hell am I supposed to do? Wait around forever? What if she never comes around? I ought to do what I wanted to before I ever got involved with her.”

She frowned. “And what’s that?”

“Move to California.”

Her breath left her, and she sat down on the end table by the land line phone. “Jack…”

He sighed, and when he spoke again, he sounded exhausted. “No, I’m not really considering it, but it almost sounds like a good idea.”

She forced levity. “With your luck, whatever sounds like a good idea is probably a really bad one.”

To her surprise, he laughed a little. “Harsh.”

“But true?”

“Maybe so.”

She shook her head. “Don’t do anything rash. I’ll come up with something. Just…sit tight for a while, okay?”

“Don’t worry. I’m enrolled here at the university for the fall semester. And I don’t really want to leave. I just want her to fall madly in love with me. Is that so much to ask?”

“Depends on who you ask.”

He snorted. “Go fix your sister. And call me when she’s willing to talk.”

She hung up and stared down at the phone.
Go fix your sister,
indeed. And just how the hell was she supposed to do that?

Something toppled over with a clunk and a rustle of plastic bags, and she sighed. The groceries needed to be put away. The girls would be home in an hour or two. Darren would be home shortly after that. What could she do in an hour?

The short answer was nothing. She could call Gabe, but would it do any good? Would her stubborn sister even mention what was wrong? If they could talk face to face, Mike might actually be able to help, but…

Her eyes narrowed, and she left the eggs on the counter to attack the calendar. Darren worked the coming weekend, but he had the next one off. He could watch the girls. He wouldn’t mind. He’d always considered Gabe his own little sister and wouldn’t want her to be so lost.

It might work. That is, if everything didn’t go farther to hell in a week.

August

Everyone knew something was wrong, but Gabe refused to enlighten them as to what. Cheryl probably had a good idea, but even she couldn’t know exactly. Sadly, Gabe wasn’t sure she knew herself.

All she knew was that the cut had to be clean. She couldn’t answer his calls. She couldn’t encourage him, let him think she might be swayed. She couldn’t let herself think it, either. The entire, ill-conceived fling was over, and the sooner everyone accepted it, the sooner she could feel alive again.

Her phone rang, and she winced. It was her land line, so it was Phil. He would probably congratulate her on her good sense. And it
was
good sense. Her mind knew it, even if her heart was still being stupid.

She shoved out of the couch’s cushy embrace and dragged her feet over to the phone. “Yeah?”

“We’re going to dinner. I’ll pick you up in half an hour. I will accept no excuses.” And he hung up.

Staring down at the dead receiver in her hand, she wondered what on earth that was all about. She didn’t feel like going to dinner. He’d probably take her to Sullivan’s, and she certainly wasn’t up to those kinds of good vibes. The very thought gave her a headache. Maybe she could hide when he showed up.

Despite the pall of oblivion that had protected her thus far, she snorted at the thought of cowering in her loft while Phil pounded on the door. As if her best friend didn’t know where the spare key was.

But she didn’t have to go. He couldn’t make her.

She didn’t even bother with the theatrics of refusing to answer the door when he knocked. “I’m not up to it, but thanks for asking.”

He glared at her. “I wasn’t asking. Either you come willingly, or I chase you down and toss you over my shoulder. You need to get out of the house for something besides work.”

“Are you drunk?”

“Gabe, don’t tempt me. We need to talk about this, and I refuse to do it in your house. You’re too well entrenched here.”

She sputtered, but he made as if to grab her, so she put up her hands up and relented. “Fine. But not Sullivan’s.”

Her eyes pleaded, and he relented. “Wasn’t planning on Sullivan’s. They’re too packed on a Friday night. We’ll go to a little hole-in-the-wall where we can actually talk. Ever been to that Chinese place, The Luck Dragon?”

She frowned. “No.”

“Me neither. Let’s go.”

He didn’t press her to talk as he drove to what proved to be a tiny, nearly deserted restaurant on the otherwise bustling main drag. She shot Phil a none-too-hopeful glance. Maybe the place was a hole-in-the-wall for a reason.

“If I end up in the hospital because you need to talk, Phil, I will hold it against you until I mercifully die.”

“At least it’s not a carnival.” He snickered when she rolled her eyes. “Although I’d stay away from any seafood on the buffet. Just in case.”

He paid, and they filled their plates in silence. She couldn’t resist shooting him an ironic look when she pointedly skipped over the vat of crab legs, though. It was the first thing approaching a smile she’d managed in almost two weeks, but Phil’s outsized happiness at the sight made her feel worse, and the amused feeling disappeared as quickly as it came.

They finally sat in an all but deserted corner. She reluctantly sampled the kung pao chicken, then dug in with abandon when it tasted better than any other she’d tasted.

“Why is this place deserted? This is fabulous.”

Phil had reached the same conclusion and shoveled in peppered beef so fast he ought to choke. “I dunno. Lack of advertising, probably.”

She’d barely made a dent in her first plate when Phil went back for another. He’d given her a reprieve, for which she was grateful. She knew it wouldn’t last. She knew she’d have to talk about what had happened. She just didn’t know if she could.

Sure enough, he started right in as soon as he settled down with his second plate. “I have to ask one question before we say anything else.” When she finally looked up from her chicken, his face softened. “Did he hurt you?”

She blinked. “What? Of course not.”

He visibly relaxed. “I didn’t really think so, but you never know. So…what?”

Poking at her food and no longer even remotely hungry, she shrugged. “It was only temporary, Phil. Just a…fling.” She glanced up to see if he caught the accidental hesitation.

His raised eyebrow assured her that he had. “Uh-huh. And you’re always mopey when you end a fling.”

“I’ve never had a fling before, so I don’t know.”

“Don’t be cute. You’ve been in the dumps twice over this guy. People don’t lose their light over a fling.” He reached over and stole a piece of chicken. “He loves you, you know.”

Her mouth dropped open. “How did
you
know?”

“Ha. I thought so.” He quirked a smug smirk. “I know because he told me, and now I know he told you. Is that why you booted him?”

“But when? When could he have possibly told you? You’ve only met him twice.”

“And he told me that first night. You were talking to Doug across the street.”

She felt the blood drain from her face. “So long, then.” Phil had known all along. Hell, Jack had known all along. How had she missed it?

But that was easy. She hadn’t wanted to see.

Her eyes narrowed, and she shot him a measuring glance. “And that’s not all he told you. You said something at the Japanese place. What else?”

To her satisfaction, he squirmed under her gimlet gaze. If he weren’t so dark-skinned, he'd probably be blushing. “Nothing important.”

“Phil.”

He glanced up for a second, then back to his plate. “I don’t know if I should tell you. It was kind of ‘in confidence’, to use one of your lawyer phrases.”

She scowled and jabbed his forearm with her chopsticks. “Spill it.”

Groaning, he slumped back and frowned at her. “I’m not sure it’s any of your business. I like the guy, and I hate to think of spilling his secrets.”

“You, of all people, are standing up for him now. Great. I bet Mike would be stroking his ego, too, if I’d bothered to call and whine. What is it with this guy?”

He put up his hands. “Hey, I admitted I was wrong about him. He’s a good man, and I think you should at least hear him out.”

“But why? It could never work between us. He’s a gigolo, in case you forgot, and—”

“But he’s not.”

He clapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes wide. She froze and stared at him, her eyes surely just as wide. The bell over the door tinkled as a couple entered, but neither Gabe nor Phil looked that way.

Finally, the need to breathe forced her to speak. “Explain.”

Phil removed his hand from his mouth, his face miserable. “Forget it.”

“Tell me everything this instant.”

He shifted, and the booth seat squeaked. “I…Gabe, you can’t…”

“Now, Phillip.”

“Fine.” He sighed. “He told me he’d quit so he could be with you, but he swore me to secrecy because he knew you'd panic and run away if you thought he was serious about the relationship.” His forehead creased in a frown. “And apparently, he was right.”

She couldn’t seem to get past those first words. “He quit?”

“Yes, and what’s more—”

She put up a single, commanding hand, and he stopped. “He quit? When?”

“As far as I know, he quit well before then. He loves you and wants to—”

“Stop.” She shook her head, her eyes closed tight. “Just stop. I…I can’t…oh, God, I’ve already ruined everything.”

“It’s not ruined. Just call him.”

She shoved aside her plate and rested her forehead on the slightly sticky table top. “Not that. God, Phil, I’ve ruined his life. I didn’t want to do that. I didn’t want him to give anything up for me. He was supposed to be
safe
, damn it!”