Risk & Reward (8 page)

Her mother turned her head, keeping her arms stacked under her cheek. “Hello to you, too, darling.”

“Hi.” She sat in the lounger next to her. “Mom, seriously.”

“It’s an adults-only pool, Tatiana. European style. Sunbathing is expected.”

She was well aware of the adults-only/European-style concept of the pool. Wyatt even had something similar at Quest, though his was more exclusive, geared toward smaller, private parties instead of hordes of sunbathing guests. They hadn’t personally tried it out—

Note to self: Make sure you drag Wyatt to the pool. For alfresco fucking possibilities.

—but she knew of its existence.

She glanced around. Only a few women had foregone their tops, and she had to admit, the level of male gawking was at a minimum, if nonexistent.

Still, that didn’t explain why her mother was topless. Not that she was an ugly woman, but she was her mom, and she was naked in public, and that was wrong in and of itself. “What would Daddy say if he knew you were out here naked?”

Her mother’s shoulders shook, and she gave a little snort. “Oh, honey. He’d be out here as soon as humanly possible, and it wouldn’t be to tell me to put my top back on.”

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

Her mom rose on her elbows to turn around, and Tatiana slapped her hand over her eyes. “Mom! Please.”

She heard a gusty sigh and the rustle of clothes. She peeked to find her mother readjusting the straps of her bathing-suit top. “Honestly, Tatiana, you’re an adult now. No need to be so prudish.”

She imagined Wyatt—hell, any of her past lovers—chortling over that statement. But her mom didn’t know about her sex life, which meant Tatiana was doing things perfectly right, as far as she was concerned. She’d figured out how to be discreet when she was fifteen and Wyatt Caine had snuck his hand under her bra for the first time. “You raised me, so I suppose it’s your fault.” Satisfied her mother was appropriately covered, she slipped out of her sundress to reveal the relatively modest bikini beneath.

Her mom reached into her beach bag and pulled out a bottle of sunscreen. “You always forget.”

Touched when she realized it was the same SPF she usually used—much higher than any her mother, with her skin’s natural tolerance to the sun, would ever buy for herself—she slathered it on. “Remember the first time I got badly burned?”

Janet rolled her eyes and readjusted her sunglasses. “How could I forget?”

Tatiana had been four or five, but she could still recall her mother’s frantic tears and calls to the pediatrician after her father had taken her to the beach, become absorbed in explaining the physical properties of marine vertebrates, and forgot to put sunscreen on her.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, soaking in the hot rays of the sun. “Have you spoken to Clarissa?” Janet asked softly.

Tatiana’s birth mother. Not her real mother. “Not since the last time.” They’d only communicated twice. Once to make initial contact, and a second time because Tatiana hadn’t received the hint that the woman wasn’t interested in pursuing a relationship.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” And it really was. Tatiana held nothing against the woman who had given her up for adoption. Maybe it was a sign of her maturity, or maybe it was because her half-brother had given her that sense of genetic connection she’d wanted. Either way, she was fine. She stirred. “You didn’t want to attend the conference?”

“Other than your father, the speakers are morons. It wasn’t worth arguing with them the whole day when it’s so nice out.”

“Good thing you came here instead of San Fran then. It’s been super chilly there.”

“I like San Francisco though. Maybe next time.” She hesitated. “If you’re still living there, of course. I don’t know what yours and Wyatt’s plans are.”

“Oh.” She paused, thought about it. “Neither do I, really.”

“Hmm.”

Her mom didn’t push, for which Tatiana was grateful. She wasn’t a pusher, not since Tatiana had dropped out of college and left the coast to pursue her dreams. She figured her parents had decided the same thing she had—that they’d rather be in each other’s lives, even if they didn’t agree on every point, than cut each other off completely.

This time, however, Tatiana was itching to talk to someone. The words bubbled out before she could halt them. “Last night was kind of a disaster, huh?”

Her mother tightened her lips and then released a small sigh. “I agree. I’m sorry, love. I had told your father to be on his best behavior, but you know the man. He has always been very protective of you. Something about Wyatt rubbed him the wrong way when you were young, and I suppose that hasn’t changed. I told him that he needed to stay open-minded, but, well…”

“It wasn’t all Daddy. Wyatt shouldn’t have been so defensive. And it’s my fault too.” She winced. “I kind of sprung dinner on him. About a half an hour before.”

“Oh, Tatiana.”

“I know. He wasn’t pleased.”

“Why did you do that?”

Tatiana squirmed, fidgeting until her legs were curled up under her. “I was scared he wouldn’t want to come.”

Janet frowned. “Does he dislike us so much? We haven’t even seen him in a decade.”

Tatiana relaxed at the note of genuine curiosity in her mother’s voice. She had hoped the other woman wouldn’t take a sign of Wyatt’s aversion personally. “No. I don’t know. I don’t think he dislikes you as much as he dislikes what you stand for.” Tatiana glanced down at her hands. “I mean, Daddy was always riding Wyatt pretty hard when we were kids—”

“Honey. If your daddy wasn’t morally opposed to firearms, he would have been cleaning guns any time a boy came to the door.”

She smiled at her mother’s dry words. “Yeah, so I think he has pretty not-fond memories of that. Plus, we fought about you guys a lot back then.” Wyatt would make cutting, sarcastic remarks and she would explode. All the damn time.

“Us? Why did you fight about us?”

“Because…” She rolled her neck, trying to relieve the tension. She’d never formally confronted either of her parents, and she wasn’t particularly keen on doing so now. “He said you were controlling me. Pushing me into a major I hated, a life I didn’t want. No girl wants to hear that. I would get mad, he’d get more annoyed, and then we’d storm off.”

Her mother signaled a passing waiter. “Can you get us a pitcher of sangria, please?” She turned to Tatiana. “He was right.”

“What?”

“He was right, back then. We were absolutely forcing you into a life you didn’t want. Not maliciously, of course, and we didn’t realize you didn’t want it, but we were still doing it.”

Tatiana stared at her mother, unprepared for the casual admission of guilt.

Her mother smiled at the waiter’s return and poured them both a glass of the fruit-filled alcohol. “You were such a sweet child, Tatiana. So eager to please. We had no idea you didn’t want to follow us into the scientific world, not until you up and quit school.”

“I know. I should have said something.”

“We may have had difficulty listening. This world, this is my life, your father’s too. We don’t fully understand anything else. If you’d told us you wanted to be an artist, we might not have taken you seriously, probably would have bought you some canvas and told you to make it a hobby. And you, sweet child, would have agreed. So even though I don’t understand what you do or why you feel the need to do it, I’m grateful you took such a stand and ran away to live your life, because I can see that it makes you happy. And it’s made you a strong woman, one who can stand on her own two feet.” Her mother sipped the sangria. “If Wyatt was one of the motivating reasons behind you striking out on your own, I’ll kiss him the next time I see him.”

“Well.” Tatiana took a big gulp of her drink. “This is interesting.”

“I only ever wanted your happiness, Tatiana.” Her mom clasped her hand.

Tatiana returned the squeeze. “I know. I’m so glad I was the lucky kid who ended up with you and Daddy.”

Her mother’s long lashes hid the sheen of moisture in her eyes. “Yes.”

Tatiana studied her mother’s hand in her own, naked except for her plain platinum wedding band. The woman worked with her hands too much to fuss with bracelets or rings. A necklace, Tatiana thought. Gold, twisted like a Mobius Coil, with chips of red rubies peeking out. Her fingers itched to draw it, to get started on it right away, but she filed the image of it away in her mind. Later. It would make a lovely birthday present.

Her mother sniffed. “Well, in any case, that extends to Wyatt. He made you happy back then, and I can see and hear it in your voice that he makes you happy now.”

“He does.” So happy it was making her crazy.

“It’s unfortunate that we all fell back into old patterns last night.”

A chill that had nothing to do with the icy drink in her hands ran down her spine. “Don’t say that. The last thing I want is to fall back into old patterns. I want to make this work this time, which means we have to do things differently.”

Her mom stopped mid-drink. “Wait a minute. Were we the reason you broke up when you were in college?” Distress crossed her otherwise-smooth brow. “Oh, honey, that would—”

“No. I mean, yes, we argued about you, but we argued about a ton of things.” She gave the response she’d said to herself so many times. “I don’t know exactly why we broke up, not anymore, but it wasn’t exclusively because of you.”

“Hmm.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Just that it’s strange, because he did make you so happy. Neither of you cheated on each other—”

“Of course not.” Betrayal wasn’t something she’d ever be comfortable with.

“Or lied to each other, or somehow transgressed hugely, so it’s strange that something you can’t remember would destroy your relationship.”

Tatiana shifted, struck. “Yeah. I suppose it is kind of weird.”

They drank in silence for a minute. “With the exception of last night, how are you trying to keep yourself from old patterns?”

Tatiana considered that question. “Well, I think we’re naturally more considerate of each other’s time. When we were younger, we didn’t really respect what the other person did. Wyatt assumed his work was more important than my schoolwork, and vice versa.”

“It’s clear that Wyatt is proud of your business.”

A small, pleased smile crossed Tatiana’s lips. Yes, she wasn’t happy Wyatt had jumped to her defense with her parents, but she generally liked his fascination and pride in her skill.

It wasn’t a business, not to her. Wyatt understood that. Even though her mother, with her unconditional love, didn’t. “He is.”

“Good. It’s hard to find a man who appreciates a woman for her brain and talent.”

Since her mother was something of a genius, Tatiana knew she was aware of what she spoke about. “Yes. We’re also not fighting. I mean, we’re super careful to make each visit with each other peaceful and happy, not chaotic.”

Janet released a crack of laughter. “If you figure out how to sustain that whole no-fighting thing, let me know. Your father and I have been quarrelling for almost forty years.”

Tatiana laughed along, but unease slithered through her.

Her mom sobered. “In seriousness, Tatiana, be careful, please. Long-distance romances are tough because it’s hard to address all of the important issues when you’re trying to pack a lot into short visits with one another.”

“I know.”

The other woman gave a sigh. “Good. And please, tell Wyatt I’m sorry. And that we’d really like to start fresh with him. I swear, I will make your father be civil. We don’t want to be the cause of any tension between you and the man you’re with.”

Tatiana nodded. The concession was kind, but she wouldn’t be able to relax unless she knew Wyatt was on board with making nice in the future. “He asked me to convey his regrets as well.”

“Did Ronald call you? He wants to have a barbecue tomorrow, while we’re here. Maybe Wyatt can come to that. It’ll give him and your father a chance to be around each other in a more relaxed atmosphere.”

The bitter laugh spilled from her lips, shocking her. Yeah, sure. During the past seven months, Wyatt had gone out of his way to avoid her brother, like he had gone out of his way to avoid the rest of her family.

Her mother was staring at her, concerned, so she tried to force a grim smile. No need to paint Wyatt any blacker in her parents’ eyes.

He’s making you choose. Making you separate your worlds so they won’t ever have to touch.

Tired of the effort it took to conceal her worries, Tatiana leaned back in the chair. “Yeah, sure. We’ll see.” No doubt tomorrow she’d have to sneak off and see her family like they were some terrible secret. Hard to do when it was Saturday, but Wyatt would probably find some excuse to bury himself in work if he had the slightest notion he would otherwise have to interact with her kin.

“Good. They will come around.”

Her skepticism must have been obvious, because her mom laughed. “Trust me, I know how to handle a proud, arrogant man. Arrange them around a grill, and they’ll all start to bond. Now…” Her mom wiggled her eyebrows. “Let’s see how many pitchers we can finish before your father gets his lunch break.”

“Do I get to drunk yell at him for being mean last night?”

“Certainly, darling. I’ll help.”

Chapter Eight

Tatiana let herself back into the penthouse and dropped her tote to the ground. Exhaustion rode her, the kind of satisfying tiredness that comes from a whole lot of lying around in the sun. Her limbs were loose from the cocktails she’d downed and the catharsis of chastising her unhappy father.

“He is not good enough for you,” he’d muttered.

She’d poked at his chest, careful not to spill her fruity drink. “You remember how you used to sneer at poor Alfie whenever he came around? You never think anyone is good for me!”

He’d given her a flabbergasted look. “Because they cannot be. You are perfect.”

Lord save her from men who thought she was perfect. At least he hadn’t completely refused to entertain the possibility of accepting Wyatt’s presence in her life. She viewed his grumbling and stomping away with a lot of hope. Sangria-fueled optimism.