Strictly Business (Heads or Hearts), page 14
‘You don’t believe me?’
‘I don’t know. Well, yes, I’m only too happy to believe you, but I – I can’t get my head around the idea that you’ve had an engagement ring all this time.’
‘So,’ he said, taking a sudden, deep breath. ‘Is it too soon to ask you if you’d accept the ring?’
Linking her hands behind his neck again, she leaned in to kiss him. ‘Liam Conway, I don’t deserve you.’
He placed a finger over her lips. ‘Stop thinking that way. You deserve a man who worships you.’
‘Well, you deserve happiness and my baby and I want to make you happy, Liam.’
He brushed warm lips across her brow. ‘Say that you’ll accept my ring and I’ll be a happy man.’
‘Of course I’ll accept it.’
‘Without seeing it first?’
‘Of course.’ But then curiosity got the better of her. ‘What’s it like?’
He grinned. ‘Not telling. I’ll keep it as a surprise.’
She wrinkled her nose at him. ‘Spoilsport.’ Then not wanting to mar this beautiful moment, she hastened to reassure him. ‘Actually, I’d be blissfully happy if your ring was a piece of scratched glass set in plastic.’
‘It’s a little better than that,’ he said. ‘I think it’s beautiful. As soon as I saw it I thought of you. The colour, the setting – it seemed perfect.’
She waggled her ring finger. ‘But do you know if it will fit me?’
He grabbed her hand and made an exaggerated study, frowning as he examined her ring finger from several angles. ‘Hmmm. We could have a problem.’
‘It doesn’t really matter if the ring’s the wrong size.’
Liam’s eyes were dancing. ‘It might be a bit big, but they can do wonderful things these days.’
‘Yes, it’s easy enough to reduce the ring.’
‘No, Alice. Haven’t you heard? They’ve worked out a way to enlarge your finger.’
She landed a playful punch on his shoulder.
‘Okay,’ he said, laughing. ‘Why don’t we settle this now by going over to my place to check the ring out?’
Alice grinned. ‘Why not?’ She glanced out the window to the grey rain sheeting down. ‘There’s no chance of a picnic.’
‘Once you’ve seen the ring we can spend a long afternoon thinking up interesting rainy day activities.’
‘Mmm.’ She felt deliciously lusty just thinking about it. ‘Sounds wonderful. We’ll take my car?’
‘Okay.’
‘I’ll get my things.’
Alice couldn’t believe how absolutely ecstatic she was as she hurried through to her bedroom. Quickly she checked the contents of her shoulder bag. Her purse, driver’s licence and hair comb were there, as well as the hundred and one things a girl needed on any given day.
Oh, and she’d better make a quick trip to the bathroom.
These days she needed to go more often.
But in the bathroom she stared in horror.
Oh, God, no.
There were dark spots on her underwear.
A surge of pure panic shot through her and her heart began to bang like a loose shutter in a storm.
‘Liam!’ she cried, rushing back to the kitchen.
‘You’ve gone so pale. What’s the matter?’
‘I’m spotting.’
‘You’re what?’ Another look at the wild terror in her eyes and he seemed to comprehend. ‘Not the baby?’
‘There’s blood.’
The shock on his face mirrored her own quaking fear. ‘Oh, hell, Alice, all of this has been too much of a shock for you.’
‘A shock?’ What was he talking about? ‘No, no it’s not that. A kiss can’t hurt me.’
But he didn’t look convinced. ‘How bad is it?’
‘I – I don’t know.’ She tried not to sound panicky, but it wasn’t possible to be brave about this. ‘Oh, Liam I don’t want to lose this baby.’ She felt suddenly sick, dizzy.
Liam’s face was contorted with anguish as he dragged a chair across the floor. ‘Here, quickly, sit down.’
‘I’m probably panicking about nothing.’ She looked up at him. ‘But I am a bit scared.’
‘You need to get to a hospital.’
She nodded. ‘Could you call for a taxi? I don’t think I’m up to driving.’
He scowled as he glanced towards the telephone. ‘A taxi on a wet Saturday in a place like this could take too long. We’ll use your car.’
‘Okay. I’m just a little giddy, but give me a few minutes and I should be all right to drive.’
‘Hell, no, Alice. Don’t even think about it.’
‘But –’
White-faced, Liam crossed the room to the little row of keys hanging near her pantry cupboard. ‘These are your car keys, aren’t they?’
‘Yes, and the silver one is the house key, but I don’t expect you to drive.’
‘I’m driving you to the hospital, Alice. Now let’s get going.’
He took her by the elbow to help her to her feet. ‘Liam, I know you don’t drive.’
He sent her a shaky smile. ‘Come on, this is an emergency, Alice.’
‘But are you sure you want to do this? It – it’s not as if our lives are at risk like they were in the plane.’
He slipped his arm around her shoulders. ‘My darling girl, the little life you’re carrying is just as precious.’
Shepherding her forward, he said, ‘Trust me, Alice. I promise I’ll take care of you.’
Still she hesitated, but then she looked up at the blaze of fierce love in Liam’s eyes and she understood with a burst of clarity that however hard this might be for him, Liam wanted to drive her, he needed to do this.
His courage enkindled her inner faith. Yes, of course she would trust him. She’d seen how competently he’d landed an aircraft in an emergency. She was quite certain that Liam Conway was a master of every enterprise he undertook.
And she realised with a rush of confidence that from this moment on and in every way she would trust this man – on this short car journey, and with the rest of her life.
With her baby’s life.
She felt calm as she smiled up at him, and as they shared his umbrella on the journey to the car. They’d made this baby together and together they’d do everything to protect it.
Her sense of calm deepened as Liam slid into position behind the steering wheel. And then, as he adjusted the seat to accommodate his long legs and turned on the ignition, she knew he would be just fine.
Liam died a thousand deaths at the hospital.
He’d been okay while he was driving. The woman he loved had needed his help, their tiny, helpless baby needed him – and that was enough. He’d driven the car safely through driving rain and across the city without mishap.
But although he was grateful that he hadn’t let Alice down, it wasn’t a moment for triumph. Now he was watching a hospital orderly wheel her to an examination room. Down a long corridor. Away from him.
He caught a last glimpse of her pale frightened face and then she was gone. And he was seized by a black, harrowing loneliness greater than any he’d ever experienced.
Oh, dear God, how could he stand this? Why had he kissed Alice so wildly? Was it possible that her problem might somehow be his fault? Alice couldn’t lose her baby. He couldn’t be responsible for another death. No, please, no. Not again.
His throat tightened over what felt like a sharp rock. Alice meant more to him than she could possibly guess. In the short time he’d known her, she had succeeded where his hard work, his business success and his efforts to help Julia and Jack had failed. Nothing else could push away the darkness and heal the hurt inside him. Alice had. That old chestnut about love lighting up your life was damn right.
As for her baby. Their baby. That fourteen centimetre being with eyelashes and eyebrows and tastebuds had already captured his heart completely.
Thrusting his hands deep into his pockets, Liam paced the polished floor. He walked to a window and looked out into the bleak grey yard. On the far side of the car park palm trees bowed to the wind, their heavy fronds waving haplessly as rain lashed at them. Flowers, pink, yellow and red, and heavy with rain, had fallen from the hibiscus bushes that lined the drive and they lay sodden and battered on the bitumen.
The sight depressed him and he moved to a stand of colourful magazines and flicked through one or two, taking in nothing.
He paced again, thinking wretchedly about Alice, alone in there with those medical people. What was happening? What were they doing to her? Was she frightened?
This was worse than all the times he’d worried about Julia.
‘Mr Conway?’
He turned at the voice. A nurse seemed to have appeared out of thin air.
‘Yes?’ Liam felt cold all over.
She smiled. What did that mean? He couldn’t tell if it was a smile that signalled good news or sympathy. His heart pounded.
‘Dr O’Brien wants to take some ultrasound pictures of the baby and Alice would like you to be with her.’
‘Right.’ The single word jammed in his throat.
‘It’s this way,’ the nurse said, heading back down the corridor.
‘Thank you.’ Hurrying after her, he considered asking her if there was a problem, but they arrived at their destination too quickly.
‘She’s in here,’ the nurse said, taking a sudden turn to the left.
Too late for questions, he hurried through the door.
Alice had changed into a hospital gown and she was lying on a bed and talking to a rather serious faced man, presumably a doctor. A technician at the end of the bed was busily adjusting a monitor screen.
Alice smiled when she saw Liam and she beckoned him closer.
He crossed quickly to her and took her hand in his. It felt cold. ‘How are you?’ His voice sounded rough and choked.
‘I’m feeling fine,’ she said. ‘Liam, this is Dr O’Brien. Doctor, this is Liam Conway, the baby’s father.’
‘How do you do?’ The two men shook hands.
‘So is everything okay?’ Liam dared to ask.
Dr O’Brien frowned. ‘There’s no immediate cause for alarm. Spotting is not uncommon. Alice’s symptoms are mild and there don’t seem to be any other signs of trouble, so there’s a good chance she’ll be perfectly fine. But we’re going to do an ultrasound scan so we can check the foetal development.’
‘Yes, of course. Do whatever you have to.’ Liam wished he felt as calm as Alice looked. The poor woman needed his moral support and he was falling apart inside.
She squeezed his hand. ‘Don’t worry, darling.’
He forced a grin. But the grin wavered as the technician lifted her gown aside and began to spread gel on her abdomen.
Alice looked up at him and her grey eyes seemed huge as she held his hand. She smiled, but as the doctor took up a position near the screen and the technician began to move a transducer over her he could see the slightest tremor in her chin.
Liam’s heart pounded. No one in the room spoke. The only sound was an occasional beep from the equipment and Liam decided there and then that landing a plane without any prior experience was a hell of a lot less stressful than becoming a first time father.
He struggled to think of something to say – a light-hearted comment that would distract Alice from worrying about her baby. All he could think was how much he loved her – and her baby. How precious they both were.
He looked down at her hand in his and massaged her fingers with his thumb. ‘When you’re out of here,’ he told her softly, ‘we’ll have to go straight to my place so I can show you that ring.’
‘Oh, yes,’ she said. ‘I’ll hold you to that. I can’t wait to see it.’
More beeps sounded from the machine and Liam wished the doctor would say something.
‘Actually,’ said Alice, ‘I think I can guess what colour it is.’
He gently jiggled her hand. ‘So you’re a mind reader, are you?’
‘Perhaps.’ She looked up at him with a shaky smile. ‘I’m sure it’s beautiful. If it’s as tasteful as that lovely bowl you bought me, it’ll be –’
‘Well, well, well.’ The doctor’s voice interrupted her.
Alice’s hand tightened around Liam’s. Her eyes were huge. ‘Is the baby all right?’
‘I’ll turn this screen and you can see for yourself.’
Liam swallowed as he stared at the monitor and tried to make sense of the blurred black and white images.
He glanced to Alice and she seemed as puzzled as he was. ‘I – I can only see – What are those two circles?’ Her mouth dropped open. ‘Oh, my goodness, are they w-what I think they are?’
‘What you’re seeing here, my dear, are two little heads.’ The doctor beamed at her as he pointed at the screen. ‘You have two babies. And from what I can see here, both babies appear to be perfectly healthy.’
‘Twins?’ A smile of pure delight broke over Alice’s face. She looked up. ‘Liam, what do you think of that?’
He was too stunned to respond.
‘You’re probably not surprised, are you?’ she said.
But he was. Totally. Twins. His mind seemed to have frozen and he couldn’t tell whether he thought this was good news or bad news. His first thought was for his brother Peter and, as always, he felt a swift shaft of pain.
But then he forced his mind past Peter’s death to remember their childhood and the fun they’d had growing up together. Peter had been his best friend, his mate. On their parents’ orchard farm they’d run wild. They’d been constant companions, building forts, or tree houses, scheming pranks, playing cricket, kicking footballs, helping each other with homework. He’d never been lonely.
‘Liam?’ Alice was watching him anxiously. ‘You don’t mind that it’s twins, do you?
He blinked. ‘No, of course I don’t mind. It’s wonderful. It’s more than wonderful. It’s fantastic.’
‘I think we can determine their sex, too,’ said the doctor, as he peered at a different image on the screen. ‘Would you like to know?’
Alice was looking at Liam again. ‘Would you?’
‘I don’t mind either way. This should be your choice, sweetheart.’
It only took her a few seconds to make up her mind. ‘No,’ she said, shaking her head emphatically. ‘I don’t want to know now, because it doesn’t really matter whether they’re boys or girls.’ She squeezed Liam’s hand. ‘We already love them anyway, don’t we, darling?’
Liam wanted to kiss her right there and then.
Soon after that, the procedure was completed and Liam was asked to wait outside in the corridor again while Alice went to a cubicle to change back into her own clothes.
She came out looking flushed and shiny eyed with happiness.
‘You clever girl,’ he told her.
‘Can you believe we’re having twins?’
‘The idea is slowly sinking in.’
She laughed. ‘It’s not a bad effort for a girl who thought she couldn’t get pregnant, is it?’
‘Two babies will be a handful.’
She gave his arm a gentle shake. ‘We’ll cope.’ Then she pulled a face. ‘Of course it means I’m going to grow as big as two houses.’
‘You’ll still be beautiful.’
‘But you’re right,’ she admitted. ‘Two babies will keep me busy.’ Suddenly she looked troubled. ‘This is not the best way to start a marriage, Liam. I want our marriage to be romantic.’
Taking her hands in his, he said, ‘We’ll make time for romance.’ He rubbed the backs of her hands with his thumbs. ‘Besides, I’d much rather be inside a marriage with you and your babies than locked on the outside without you.’
Her eyes glistened. ‘Don’t worry. The babies and I insist on having you there with us – on the inside.’
He smiled and bent his head to drop two warm kisses on her happy lips. ‘That’s a kiss for each of your babies.’
Her cheeks dimpled. ‘And what about another one for their mother, please?
‘Just a gentle one this time. I don’t want to get you all stirred up again.’
‘Liam, stop worrying and kiss me. Properly.’
He glanced up and down the corridor. ‘Isn’t it rather public here?’
‘Be quick then.’
Liam obeyed. ‘You have no idea how much I love you, Alice.’
‘I love you, too,’ she said close to his ear. ‘And your babies. We’re going to be all right, Liam. I’m sure of it.’
As they headed down the corridor, Alice stopped again, abruptly. ‘Goodness, I’ve totally overlooked thanking you for driving me here.’
His mouth twisted into a crooked smile. ‘No big deal.’
But they both knew what an understatement that was. In many ways that short car journey had been a private symbol of faith and commitment for both of them.
‘And now,’ Liam said. ‘I’m going to drive you to my place. The doctor told me you still have to take things quietly for the next few days. You’re going to put your feet up and you’re going to allow me to pamper you with dainty morsels while you admire your engagement ring.’
She slipped her arm through the crook of his elbow. ‘Now that sounds like my kind of Saturday.’
CHAPTER TWENTY
SHE WAS sitting alone at the bar with her back to him, but she knew the moment he arrived. She saw his reflection in the mirror behind the bar and a frisson of anticipation danced across her skin as she watched him make his way towards her.
When he drew close their eyes met in the mirror – hers clear grey, his light blue. He smiled and she smiled back at him – a private exchange between a man and a woman in love.
When he slipped onto the stool beside her, she turned his way and warmth began to pool deep inside her. It was two years to the day since she’d met this man here in this bar, and his face was now as familiar as her own, but nothing could dim her desire for him.
‘Hi there,’ he said, his blue eyes making a leisurely, yet appreciative inspection of her sleeveless dress of smoky green silk. It was new and slinky and she was pleased that he liked it.
‘Hi,’ she said simply.
With his elbows resting on the bar, he leaned close and whispered in her ear, ‘Has anybody ever told you, you’re bloody beautiful?’
