Deceived (13 page)

Janelle paused in the nylon fight as they started dishing about her husband. She peeped through the gap at the door of the stall and saw two women, one blonde and one brunette, standing in front of the mirrors freshening up their makeup. “I know. Those intense eyes, those broad shoulders, and those large hands.” She gave an exaggerated moan. “I would love to feel them all over my body.”

“You know what they say about large hands,” the brunette woman replied, and her friend giggled.

“Jillian, you are so bad.” She sighed as she pressed powder to her nose and cheeks. “Shame he got snagged.”

“Hmph. More like trapped. I went out with him once. She is
so
not his type.
Everybody
knows he only married her because she managed to get pregnant. God, how she can show her face here and even pretend to be accepted into his world—” Janelle felt each word like a dart piercing her skin. She bit her lip as her eyes filled with tears. She knew it was the hormones. Ordinarily, she would have marched out of the stall and set that bitch in her proper place. But at the moment, her throat was constricted and tears flowed down her cheeks. She wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing her pain.

A stall door opened and banged shut. “Jillian, Amber, I’m so glad you could make it.” The new voice sounded familiar. Janelle shifted and she could see her mother-in-law’s shimmery pink gown. Ann joined them at the sinks. Washing her hands, she met the gaze of the brunette in the mirror. “Jillian, I wish you didn’t have to leave so soon. But rest assured, we appreciated your considerable donation.”

“What? There must be some mistake. I don’t have to leave.”

“Yes, you do. Your dress is all wet.” Filling her hands with water, she splashed Jillian, dousing the other woman’s low-cut red dress from her neck to her waist. The other woman shrieked and backed up. Jillian’s high-pitched voice echoed off the walls.

“What do you think you’re doing? Have you gone
senile
? Why would you do that?”

Ann turned off the water and dried her hands in the provided paper towels piled on the countertop. “Jillian, Aidan invited you to dinner that once because I pleaded with him to ask you out. Do not presume to know anything about my family. He and Janelle are very happy and if I hear you spreading your ugly rumors about my son or my daughter-in-law again, you will be very sorry.” She tossed the rumpled paper in the trash. “Now,” she said on an inhalation of breath, “consider yourself uninvited. Amber, you are welcome to stay, provided of course that you are not of the same mind as your friend here.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Baker, but I’m her ride.”

Ann nodded and watched them leave. “You can come out now, dear.”

Janelle sighed and dried her tears. Smoothing her skirt, she exited her hiding place. “You knew it was me?”

Ann smiled. “Of course. I recognized those lovely shoes.”

She glanced down at her black sugar suede Kate Spade pumps. “Oh.” She stepped up to the mirror to view the damage to her mascara. She washed her hands. “Thank you for standing up for me.”

“You’re family,” Ann said simply.

Janelle found herself fighting another bout of tears. Family wasn’t something she had a lot of these days. She and her sister had never been close and when their parents passed away, they’d drifted further apart. It meant a lot to her that Ann had accepted her despite the circumstances behind her marriage.

Ann handed her a tissue with a laugh. “Hormones? I cried every night when I was pregnant with Aidan.”

She wiped her face, cleaning up the black smudges beneath her eyes, and then searched her purse for mascara. She applied a light coat to her lashes. “I don’t cry every night. Just most nights,” she admitted with a smile. Once she’d fixed her face, they exited the bathroom together and ran smack into Aidan.

“You were gone for a long time,” he said. “I was beginning to worry.” He took her hand and kissed her temple. “Are you tired?” Aidan had taken to spoiling her. He drew her bubble baths at night and massaged her feet. Once the baby was born, he intended to take maternity leave as well. She had never felt so loved.

“No, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure? We could go home and rest.”

Ann replied before she could. “Aidan, don’t smother the girl. You’ll have plenty of nights cooped up at home once the baby comes. Let her enjoy her evening out.”

They returned to the other guests, this time sticking by Dionne and Timothy. Janelle knew that it was because Aidan still wasn’t convinced that she wasn’t tired. Janelle didn’t complain; she appreciated the respite from entertaining strangers.

She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned. “Mrs. Wilson,” she gasped with some surprise. “You’re looking lovely,” she said, and meant it. Mrs. Wilson looked more relaxed than she’d ever seen her. Previously, there had always been a tension around her eyes and mouth.

Mrs. Wilson smiled. “Thank you. May I have a private word with you?”

“Of course.” She turned to Aidan. “I’m going to step away for a few minutes.” Nodding, Aidan allowed his arm to fall away from her waist. She followed Mrs. Wilson to a secluded corner.

“Janelle, I just wanted to thank you for not pressing charges against Jerome. When he told me everything he did…” She stopped to shudder. The large white hat she wore shook precariously on her head. She reached out to take Janelle’s hands. “I’m sorry I added to your trauma by coming to your store that day.”

Janelle couldn’t have been more surprised. “He told you the truth about…about…?”

Mrs. Wilson nodded. “I was so ashamed of him. He told me when he was on the verge of going to jail. Your husband had contacted him and he was so furious that he spit out the entire sordid tale. He wanted to keep pressing matters. He was planning on going to the newspaper to claim that Aidan raped you and then unjustly fired him. I couldn’t let him do it. It took some doing, but I persuaded him to drop the wrongful termination suit and to begin seeing a therapist.”

She finally understood why she hadn’t heard from Jerome since that day. He loved and respected his mother. If anyone could make him see reason, it was her. “I should be thanking you. How is he?”

“He’s fine. I’m getting him some help. I feel partly responsible for his treatment of you. When he was a boy, I gave him whatever he wanted because his father was never around. And then his father passed away… He was always such a good boy, never got in trouble, eager to please. I never would have guessed he would do anything like this.”

“Of course you wouldn’t. And this isn’t your fault.”

“I didn’t prepare him to ever be disappointed in life. He can’t handle anyone giving him ‘no’ for an answer.” She gave Janelle’s hand a squeeze and her eyes dropped to her belly. “Anyway, I’m glad to see that things worked out for you. You have a husband who loves you and a baby on the way. You were so good to my Jerome. Hopefully, one day, he’ll manage to find a woman half as good as you.”

“Thank you.”

“Well, I’d better not hold you any longer. Your husband keeps glancing over this way every few seconds.”

She turned and met Aidan’s gaze. He arched a brow. She smiled back at him. “Yes, he’s been simply amazing.”

“You’re happy with him?”

“Very.”

“That makes me feel so much better.”

Janelle hugged her good-bye and went back to her husband’s side. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close.

* * * *

“Why didn’t you tell me that Jerome was suing you?”

Aidan’s hand rested on her belly. They’d just made love and he’d expected her to fall asleep like she usually did. He moved a lock of hair off her neck and kissed her. “I didn’t want you to worry. It was nothing. He had no chance of winning. And then he dropped the lawsuit and I didn’t see the point in dragging him up again.”

She rolled over to face him. “His mother said that she was getting him help so we shouldn’t hear from him again.”

“That’s good,” he said, but he didn’t really care about Jerome so long as the man stayed away from Janelle.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and moved closer. Trailing her toes up his leg, she said, “I want to tell you something.”

He shivered as she wrapped her leg over his hip. His body immediately responded. He rubbed his arousal against her mound. “What’s that?” he asked, struggling to concentrate on her words.

“You love me.”

Aidan grinned. “Yeah, I do.”

A smile stretched her sensual lips. “Then why haven’t you told me so.”

“I didn’t think you were ready to hear it.” He stroked her back. “I’ve loved you for some time. Almost since the day I married you.”

Her eyes widened. “That far back?”

“And every day we’ve been together, I’ve loved you more and more.”

Her dark brown eyes glistened with unshed tears. “I love you too.”

He grinned again. Thumbing away her tears, he said, “I know.”

She grimaced. “How did you know?”

“It’s in the way you give yourself to me so sweetly. I can see it in your eyes when I look at you across a room.” He kissed her forehead. “And, quite frankly, what’s there not to love about me?”

She laughed. “Well, you’re arrogant, you like classical music, I can’t get you to wear anything but black suits, you’re impatient—” He covered her mouth with his before she could continue her list of his faults. They were many and he knew them all, but letting the woman of his dreams slip through his fingers was not among them. Now that he had her, he was never letting her go. Aidan deepened the kiss and rolled onto his back so that she was on top of him.

Epilogue

“Aidan, I am getting out of this bed. I haven’t gotten up except to go to the bathroom since we got home yesterday.” Dionne and Timothy were downstairs. They’d come to see the baby, and to visit with them as well. Ann had come home from the hospital with them and spent the night. She’d left to check on her husband, but planned to come back for dinner. Her sister Della would be coming down for the weekend. Donovan Avery Clark was asleep in his bassinet. Though his crib was set up in the nursery, she couldn’t bear to have him out of her sight. Janelle leaned over and ran a hand over his black curls before sending her husband a mock glare as she shrugged into her robe. She couldn’t really be angry with him. He was only concerned for her welfare. “Lying in bed all day isn’t good for me. I need to get about if I’m going to recover.”

“I don’t want you to overdo it.”

“I won’t. Will you carry Donovan downstairs for me?”

“Yes.” He scooped the nine-pound buddle into his arms. Donovan’s eyes opened briefly before he yawned and settled back into his nap. Janelle smiled. She could watch him all day. Something about watching Aidan holding their son made her love her husband more than she thought possible. He was so gentle with the baby.

“Six weeks,” he said with a wicked grin.

“I wasn’t thinking dirty thoughts,” she replied with a laugh. She wanted to run down the stairs, but she didn’t want to scare Aidan and she found she wasn’t up to moving as fast as she’d thought she’d be.

They entered the den to find Dionne and Timothy snuggled up on the couch. He held her hand as he kissed her. Aidan cleared his throat. “Can’t you guys save that for when you’re alone?”

Timothy pulled back, but they kept their fingers entwined. His thumb stroked over Dionne’s ring finger. Janelle gasped as she noticed the rock that graced her friend’s finger. “You’re engaged! When did this happen?”

Dionne giggled. “Last night.” She stood and held her hand out so that Janelle could examine the square cut stone.

“It’s beautiful. And to think, you didn’t want to date him.”

Timothy burst out laughing. Dionne groused, “You had to bring that up.” She moved around Janelle and scooped baby Donovan into her arms. She’d been at the hospital for the delivery, but hadn’t seen the baby since then. “Well, aren’t you a handsome little fellow,” she cooed.

“Takes after his dad,” Aidan said. Janelle rolled her eyes and Timothy groaned. He placed a pillow in a chair and gestured for her to take a seat. “So when are the two of you planning to tie the knot?”

“We’re thinking next summer,” Timothy replied. Dionne sat next to him and he put an arm around her shoulders. “You’re my first choice for my best man, of course.”

“I wouldn’t miss it,” Aidan responded.

Dionne ran a fingertip over Donovan’s tiny fists. “And Janelle will be my maid of honor. Also, I want you to design my dress. You’re the only one who could do justice to my curves.”

“I think I do a pretty good job,” Timothy murmured, and Janelle was delighted to see Dionne blush.

“Tim, I thought I’d never see the day when you settled down,” Aidan said with a grin.

“Ha! I could have said the same of you.”

Timothy and Dionne stayed for dinner. Ann returned with John in tow. He didn’t want to be without his wife for another night. Halfway through dinner, Janelle heard Donovan’s cry over the baby monitor. She made the slow trek upstairs to their bedroom. His eyes, a shade of hazel that looked blue-gray from the side, were scrunched tight and his tiny face was red. “As impatient as your daddy, I see,” she said, giving him a pacifier. She undid his one piece and changed his wet diaper.

She snuggled Donovan close and breathed in his sweet baby scent. “Are you ever planning to rejoin us?” Aidan asked. He handed her a bottle of warmed milk.

“He’s just so beautiful.”

“As is his mother.” He helped her get settled into the rocking chair they had taken out of Donovan’s nursery.

Janelle smiled up at him before turning back to their son. “You’ve already tested the temperature of this milk?” At his nod, she offered the bottle to the baby. When he was done, she gave the bottle back to Aidan and placed Donovan on her shoulder. One pat and he gave a small burp. Her eyes met Aidan’s and they both smiled.

He leaned down and captured her lips with his. “I love you, Janelle.”

“I love you too.” She appreciated their friends and family visiting, but she also looked forward to these moments of peace when it was just their small family. It amazed her when she thought of it how her relationship with Aidan could have started so wrong and ended so well.