Shadowed Paradise (46 page)

Brad gave Claire and a wide-eyed Jamie a long
look before he shook his head. “Sorry, Chalmers, the timing’s
poor.”

“
Aw, Brad,” Jamie objected.

“
Don’t be silly,” Claire exclaimed.
“This is what you do, you’re good at it.” And, dear God, she meant
it. When had the government ceased to be the enemy?

Doug flashed a smile. Rather than an ending,
his handshake with Brad promised new beginnings. He wasn’t
prepared, however, for the hug and kiss on the cheek from Claire,
or the feel of small arms around his hips, a head resting against
his stomach.

“
Goodnight, Jamie,” he said, squeezing
the boy’s shoulder. “I’m glad this isn’t goodbye. You’re a tough
one, James Langdon. Someday maybe you’ll end up working for us
too.”

Claire shut her eyes, hung on, as the irony
of it set off a wave of pain. And then . . . it was gone. Old grief
and anguish dissolved into new beginnings.

She was free at last.

Claire crawled into bed that night, thinking
she might sleep forever. Then again, she might not sleep a wink.
She was going to replay every word, every gesture, every thought,
every mistake of the last eight hours until the sun rose, bright
and shining, on another gorgeous day in paradise. With a scowl, she
muttered a word that rarely passed her lips.

From the door to the walk-in closet Brad eyed
his wife with considerable misgiving. There had never been a
question of sending Jamie back to his grandmother, so they could
enjoy a few more days of privacy. Hell, he was probably going to
have trouble prying Claire away from the kid long enough to take
the cruise he was going to surprise her with in lieu of the
interrupted honeymoon. Maybe in a month or two when they felt more
like partying.

Or maybe not at all. She’d married him for
protection. And damn near not got it. It had been a close run
thing. Jody, Jamie . . . Claire. He’d promised to protect them, and
nearly lost all three in one afternoon.

And then . . . he’d seen Claire’s eyes right
after Lovell jumped. Right after he, Bradley Whitlaw Blue, stood
there and let Lovell jump. Claire’s horror. Her comprehension. She
knew he could have stopped it. That he’d let a man die. Did she
think him a murderer? Would she turn away, now that he had finished
his usefulness?

And then there was Chalmers. Was Claire the
reason the FBI agent had developed such a sudden interest in
Florida? Was the show of friendship just that? A smokescreen to
hide behind while he stole Brad’s wife?

And Claire? What was she going to do now the
killer was gone and Chalmers was all buddy-buddy? Wearily, heavily,
Brad lowered himself to the bed. Shoulders slumped, head hanging,
he tried to organize the words that had to be said.

Claire took a deep breath, let it out in a
long, silent sigh. She had been hoping enough had been said, but it
seemed the ugliness wasn’t quite over.

“
I could have shot him in the leg,”
Brad said. “Had him down in a matter of seconds. I guess you know
that.”

She had guessed what was bothering him, but
was surprised to discover he believed she didn’t understand. “It
was the right decision,” Claire assured him.

“
You really think so?”

“
Yes. You’re a good man, Brad Blue.
Beneath that macho manliness beats a compassionate
heart.”

“
I missed the call on Jamie . . . and
Jody.”

“
Not really. He didn’t bother Jamie.
Your only mistake—and it was a very understandable one—was not
remembering that Jody is no longer a child.”

“
She came within seconds of dying. If
you hadn’t . . .”

“
But I did.”

He couldn’t accept it. Not yet. “Is Chalmers
coming to Florida because of you?”

“
Good God, no!” Claire almost shouted.
“For a smart man, how can you be so stupid? Doug Chalmers is top on
the list of the feds I asked you to protect me from.”

“
Oh.” Brad thought that one over, made
one final fishing expedition into the unexplored jungle of his
wife’s mind. “I almost didn’t make it in time today. I let you
down.”

“
Never,” Claire asserted. She touched
his lower lip with the tip of her index finger. “I was just looking
for an excuse, you know. From the night we met I knew how it was
going to be. I’d been so hurt, I was terrified of making a mistake,
but I knew I had to have you. Everything else—the protection from
the feds, from the killer—was just an excuse. You were going to
protect me anyway, right? Telling myself, telling
you,
I needed a live-in bodyguard was
just camouflage. I lusted after you . . . was madly in love with
you. Any old excuse would have done.”

The sparkle began to revive in Brad’s sky
blue eyes. “I think”—he hesitated—“I think you actually mean
it.”

“
Damn right I mean it. In fact . . .”
Claire’s eyes danced. Incredibly, she’d almost forgotten . .
.

“
Do you remember the night you first
showed me Amber Run? The night you asked me to marry you? You were
totally obnoxious, made some remark about barefoot and pregnant, or
was it a shotgun wedding? At any rate, I went back on birth control
pills the next day. Then . . . well, about a month later when it
was time for a refill, I—uh—well, I didn’t get it. I didn’t want to
admit it, not even to myself, but when I looked at that empty
container and faced the fact that I didn’t really want a refill, I
realized I was never, ever, going to let you get away. Even if I
had to stoop to being vulgar, underhanded, unprofessional
and”—Claire hung her head—“and
cheap
! And besides, it was your idea, so it’s all
your fault.”

“
What’s my fault?” Brad asked,
genuinely puzzled.

“
I’m pregnant.”

“
You’re
what
?”

“
You’ve heard of the condition, I
presume?”

“
Oh, shit!” Brad had visions of Jordan
Lovell scrambling up the spiral staircase after Claire, the knife
gleaming in his hand.

“
Is it all right?” Claire inquired
anxiously. “You did want children, didn’t you?”

“
Wha . . . oh, sorry.” Brad recovered
swiftly. “Hell, yes,” he affirmed. “I was just thinking we almost
had four casualties this afternoon instead of three.” He closed the
door on the past, locked it, threw away the key.

Let’s celebrate,” said Brad Blue to his wife
of four days. With something close to a rebel yell, he swooped down
on Claire with the intention of never letting go.

She squirmed and wiggled, hit him on the
back.

“
What the hell?” Brad growled, lifting
his mouth from hers.

“
The doors are open,” Claire hissed.
“Remember? Between our room and Jamie’s?”

Brad rolled away with a groan, opened one
hopeful eye. “He’s out like a light, Claire. Poor kid isn’t going
to move before morning.”

“
He’ll probably have
nightmares.”

“
I’m dying, woman.”

“
You’re the one who wanted a
family.”

“
Shit!” But he said it very softly.
“Tomorrow the damn doors stay closed.”

“
Well . . .” Claire hedged, but her
lips were twitching.

Chuckles rolled up from his diaphragm. Happy.
He was happy. “It’s going to work, isn’t it, Mrs. Blue? This
marriage is really going to work.”

“
Oh, yes, Big Blue,” she whispered,
running her hand through his long, pale hair. “It’s really going to
work.”

~ The End ~

About the Author:
Although Blair Bancroft is best known for her Regency
romances, she loves to venture into new genres and has written
romantic suspense, mystery, medieval romance, and futuristic, and
is about to tackle her first steampunk. Please look for
Paradise Burning
, the sequel
to
Shadowed Paradise
, which
features that new addition to Amber Run, the “reclusive writer”
(and sometime spy).

In addition to making her backlist
available online, Blair plans to upload some new works in the
not-too-distant future. For a list of books currently available,
please see below. Blair’s websites are
www.blairbancroft.com
and
www.darynparke.com
. Blair also invites you to
visit her blog at
http://mosaicmoments.blogspot.com/

Blair’s books currently online:

Lady Silence

A Gamble on Love

A Season for Love

The Harem Bride

The Temporary Earl

The Courtesans’s Letters

Steeplechase

Tarleton’s Wife

The Captive Heiress