Reunion for the First Time (23 page)

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Clark staring at them, and with the fierce pressure of his lips, Wallace squelched any sounds from Elizabeth except a faint mewl that he hoped Clark wouldn’t hear.

The elevator doors swished closed, and he dropped her back on her feet.

“You son of a bitch!” Nearly toppling over as she shoved his chest with both hands, he staggered a few steps backward.

She dragged the back of her hand across her lips, eyes blazing. “Don’t you
ever
touch me again!”

Knuckles on each hip she leaned forward, shoulders heaving. She raised her head, and stared at him, disgusted. “How dare you treat me like this? I don’t owe you a thing, Wallace. To think I once loved you, wanted to marry you.”

Wallace brushed past her and punched the elevator button. Pivoting, he turned into the swing of her arm, the stinging slap landed squarely on the side of his face. He grimaced but would not stoop to hit a woman, in public anyway.

“Return my $10,000 donation check,” he growled.

The bell sounded and the elevator opened. He stepped inside and pushed the ground floor button staring at her. “I never intended to marry you, by the way.”

Chapter Twenty

Convinced he was an idiot, Jack kicked the door to his closet shut with the toe of his boot. The slam echoed through the silent house.

Whenever he had closed his eyes in the uncomfortable, plastic, airport chairs or the more comfortable seat in First Class, he saw Lizzie and Wallace locked together like lovers.

He figured Liz and Wally’d had a good laugh at his expense. Duped by her innocent act. She had always wanted Wally first.

What the hell happened? For years he guarded himself and avoided the pain he’d seen in his father’s eyes every day growing up. He had let his guard down for one solitary night and look where it left him. He didn’t want to look in the mirror and see Dad’s pained expression on his face.

Emptying his pockets onto the glass end table he picked up one item. No need to open the box knowing what was nestled inside on a bed of black velvet. He had taken the ring out and tested its brilliance in the overhead light on the plane heading to Boston, and he’d left it in his pocket on the flight home. What the hell had he been thinking?

His grandmother had been surprised, but so pleased, when he showed up at her door Christmas Eve morning.

Was it really only yesterday? Yeah, it was. Merry Christmas, Jack.

He kicked the closet again. It seemed like a lifetime ago.

Thrilled to give him the diamond that her mother had worn, Grandma Viv had turned the ring over to him without asking one question. The ring had been promised to him when he found his special love. Yesterday, he thought he had found his soul mate.

At least he had seen Lizzie’s true colors before he made a complete fool of himself.

Now he would have to explain to Grandma Viv that it was a false alarm, a crazy mistake.

A primitive anger built in his chest. He wanted to smash his fist into the wall. How had she manipulated herself into his life? For years his anger with his father for falling apart when Mom left seemed justified. Like father like son. As much as he hated to admit it, he had been tough on his father. This kind of loss could rip a man in two.

But he’d be stronger than his father, wouldn’t crumble or fall apart. He refused to wallow in the pain.

The message alert buzzed on his cell phone. He had avoided retrieving his messages since he left Boston. Giving in, he went through the motions of dialing into his voicemail and listened. When he heard her voice, he damned himself for not being able to hang up.

“
Jack, hi, it’s Lizzie…Beth. I can’t wait to talk to you. And hear your voice. I have the most wonderful news. Kay had the babies. Noel Elizabeth and Merry Katherine.”
Her infectious laughter bubbled in his ear.

“They’re going to get even for those names one day. I didn’t get a chance to call you. Everything was so crazy. Mick called, and Kay was hemorrhaging, so I had to get here as fast as I could. I just ran out the door. Even forgot my cameras. Can you believe it? No cameras to take pictures of the prettiest babies ever born. Then my cell phone died. Didn’t do me any good that I finally remembered the damn thing. Too bad I forgot the charger. It was touch and go with Kay, but I’ve seen her and the doctor says she’s going to be all right. I just came from seeing the girls. Beautiful, amazing, angels. Wow I am going on and on and Merry…”

The timer cut her off before she finished her message. He hated the fact that he missed her. She sounded so sweet, so genuine.

He hit the return call button needing to talk to her. Maybe she could convince him he hadn’t seen what he thought.

“You have reached Wallace Prescott. I am unavailable. Leave a message.”

Jack threw the phone across the room and sagged onto his bed. He had his answer.

She’s with him. But why?

He pulled the pillow from under the bedspread, buried his face in it and was assaulted with the delicate scent of Beth’s perfume. The smell of roses clung to his sheets and his hands. Thoughts of their passionate lovemaking jolted him off the bed. Tearing the sheets off, he bundled them up and threw them in the hamper.

Jack couldn’t close his eyes in his own bed without seeing her poised beneath him naked, taunting him. He grabbed a duffle bag from his closet, threw a few things in it, zipped it up, tugged the strap over his shoulder and headed out of the bedroom. In the kitchen, he noticed the light flashing on the answering machine. He deleted all the messages without listening to any of them. Out into the cold, he jumped into his car and screeched out of the driveway.

He knew exactly where he would spend the holidays and would call Charlie on the way to apologize for not being at Christmas dinner with the family. A pang of guilt assaulted him over leaving Charlie alone on this first Christmas without Mari, but he was in no state of mind to offer comfort to his brother. No need to explain his change of plans. He would just tell him something came up. Charlie could think what he wanted to think. He couldn’t explain why. At least not yet. Maybe never.

****

Early Christmas morning Lizzie walked into Kay’s hospital room with a put-on smile. She was sure her red-rimmed eyes gave her away.

“Merry Christmas.” Lizzie knew her voice sounded weak and wavered.

“Merry Christmas, Bella. Wow, you look worse than I feel. Mickey, darling, can you let Lizzie and I have some girl time?” She kissed her husband and gave him a beatific smile.

When he closed the door behind him, Kay gazed at her shrewdly, her eyes narrowed to slits. “What’s up, Bella?”

Lizzie fidgeted with her hands unwilling to meet Kay’s eyes. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve left messages everywhere for Jack, and he didn’t call me back. I’ve left messages with Charlie, and he didn’t call me back. Why does this keep happening to me?”

“Well what’s the big deal? It’s Christmas. Maybe he’s busy with family.” Her casual words pained Lizzie.

She frowned. “I’m so afraid that the same thing has happened to me with Jack as with Wallace. It appears Jack doesn’t want anything to do with me.”

Even though she didn’t think she had any tears left to cry, Lizzie’s eyes welled again as she sank down to sit on the foot of Kay’s bed.

Kay’s eyes widened. “Oh, my God. I understand now. You slept with Jack, didn’t you?”

“I thought I made love with Jack.” Lizzie swiped under each eye with the knuckle of her index finger.

“Spill it. I want the facts. Where? When? How?”

“We can talk later, you must be exhausted,” she said, hardly in the mood to provide details.

Lizzie stood poised to approach Kay for a hug and then leave.

Kay’s eyes softened. “I’m not tired. Don’t you want to get this off your chest?”

Lizzie paced around the small room. “I went back to his house after the ball. It was wonderful, heavenly, amazing. I told him that I loved him.” Despite her fear that Jack had deserted her, she was glad to share this confidence with Kay. Just twenty-four hours before, the memory of that evening was joyful.

“What did he say? Did he tell you he loved you, too?”

“Yes. But obviously he didn’t mean it.” Tears tracked down her cheeks again.

“Honey, you are a beautiful, strong, caring, lovable woman. No man you want could resist you, least of all Jack. Are you sure he’s avoiding your phone calls? Maybe he hasn’t even gotten them. There has to be some kind of mistake. Something isn’t right here. Jack would never hurt you. I saw the way he looked at you at the reunion.”

“I will
not
cry about this anymore.” Lizzie looped around Kay’s bed, aimlessly pacing. “Hard to believe that Wallace might be right about something.”

“What in God’s name does Wallace have to do with any of this?”

Kay reclined against her pillow, arms folded over her stomach, watching her movements keenly.

“It’s a long story, but the two of them are competitors. Wallace claims there’s some sort of ego game going on between the two of them.” Lizzie sat on the bottom of Kay’s bed. “Wallace can go to hell. And if Jack’s playing games, he can go right with him.”

“Oh, Wallace has a screw loose. If anyone has ego problems, it’s Wallace. You can’t trust him.”

“Damn straight.”

Kay raised her eyebrows. “That’s the spirit.”

“You know what that son of a bitch did?”

“Which son of a bitch are you referring to?” Kay gave her an impish grin.

Lizzie snorted a laugh. “Last night, outside the nursery, he practically muzzled me with a kiss. Kissed me so hard that I could barely breathe. Tried the same thing in Chicago on Thanksgiving. I was honestly afraid I wouldn’t be able to stop him.”

“I hope you kicked him to the wall.” Kay punched her hand with her fist.

“I kneed him in the groin in Chicago.”

Kay cracked up, contagious for Lizzie.

“Stop,” Lizzie protested, sinking back down of the end of the bed again, tears streaming down her cheeks, this time from laughing so hard. “I left a couple of bruises on his chest last night. I believe I screamed don’t ever touch me again. Slapped him the face, too. He wants his donation check back. And his nasty final remark in the elevator was that he never intended to marry me.”

“Screw him.”

“Kay, I swear.” Lizzie held up a hand that shook with her giggles. “You’re going to make me wet my pants.”

“Good riddance to Wallace. Don’t give up on Jack. I’m usually a good judge of character.”

“Then why hasn’t he called me back? I bought a new charger and I didn’t turn the phone off all night. I left a message on Charlie’s machine, too. Doesn’t anybody answer phones anymore? I just wish someone would call me back.”

“Oh honey. Don’t jump to conclusions. Who knows? Maybe Jack’s on his way here to surprise you.”

“I hadn’t thought about that.”
Wouldn’t that be nice?

“Sorry to interrupt.” Mick poked his head in the door. “I just wanted you to know that the family has arrived,
all
the family.” He rolled his eyes. “They’re about to barge in here to sing carols to you, Kay. Thought you’d appreciate a warning.”

“Thanks, honey.”

Lizzie held Kay’s hands. “I’ll be in the way here. I have to get going.”

“Where are you going? It’s Christmas. Stay here and celebrate with our wacky families. You’re never in the way. You’re my family, too.”

“I’ll stay a few days, I promise. I think I’ll check in at The Charles instead of the motel down the street. Pamper myself a little. Merry Christmas, Kay.”

Tears brimmed in Kay’s eyes. “Lizzie, I don’t want you to be alone. Are you sure you should go?”

Lizzie scooted off the end of the bed and rushed to Kay’s side, stooping over for a hug. “Ah, don’t cry, honey. I’ll be fine. I always am.”

Twenty people crowded into Kay’s room bellowing
White Christmas.
The eggnog or mimosas must have been a little too strong at brunch because the singing was off-key and off-tempo by a lot. Lizzie blew Kay a kiss from the door and left the ward, stopping briefly to peek at the twins in the nursery.

She had a dull ache in the center of her chest as she walked out of the hospital. She didn’t want pity from Kay or her family. Although she knew she was welcome, she would rather be alone.

Even after all these years, she couldn’t be with another family on Christmas, no matter how close. She would come back tomorrow and spend a few days with Kay like she had done the summer after she lost her parents and take the time away from Chicago to lick her wounds. Maybe Kay was right. Maybe Jack would surprise her.

****

Seated on the bed in her room, she picked up her phone and dialed. Pick up, Jack. Prove me wrong. Prove you can handle a relationship.

She got his recorded invitation to leave a message. Sighing, she’d do this once more,
“Hi. It’s me again. I haven’t heard from you yet and I thought you might wonder where you could reach me. I’m at The Charles. Hard to believe there’s a room available on short notice it being Christmas and all, but I’m in suite 317. I’m sure you have the hotel number, so give me a call when you get this message. I miss you Jack.”

She placed the phone in its cradle, lay on the bed, pulled her legs up to her chest in a fetal position and cried herself to sleep.

****

Two days later Lizzie had given up any hope that Jack was going to show up and surprise her. In an attempt to keep some of her dignity intact, she had, so far, resisted the temptation to call Jack again. But the urge nagged her every waking moment, and even in her dreams. She couldn’t, wouldn’t embrace the idea that he had abandoned her, too.

Did all men only want conquests and when they got what they wanted move on?

The Christmas holiday over, he’d be back to work. In one final attempt to reach him, she dialed his office number and identified herself to the woman who answered.

A pleasant silky voice, “Miss Moran, Mr. Clark is not in the office this week. If you would like to leave a message, I’ll be sure he receives it when he calls in.”

“He’s calling in? That’s wonderful. Thank you. Please just tell him that I called and need to speak with him.”