Another Woman's Son (Harlequin Romance) Read online

  “You were married to my sister. She and Will haven’t been gone long.” She pushed out of his arms and turned away.

  “And your parents?”

  “It’s all the same problem. I want to wrap your arms around me and tell you everything that’s bothering me, but you’re not just my best friend anymore. I don’t know how to deal with what I feel for you now.”

  “I won’t give up on you—on us—and I’m willing to face your parents’ disapproval if we have to.”

  She knew he was close before he touched her. He linked his hands at her waist and pulled her against him. Being in his arms was such a relief—that couldn’t last. “I packed my stuff last night.”

  His chin brushed her hair as he turned his head. “It’s still last night. Why would you want to leave Tony and me?”

  With his lips at her ear, she couldn’t remember, and she certainly didn’t want to go. “I told you.”

  He leaned so far around her he reached the corner of her mouth. She needed more. She turned and spread her fingers across his chest, pleased to find his racing heartbeat and tight nipples.

  “Don’t tease, Isabel.”

  He kissed her and she clung, craving him as if they’d barely been apart for a second. At last, he raised his head and she buried her face in the hollow of his throat, breathing in his musky, irresistible scent. “Maybe with some space we’ll be rational enough to work it all out.”

  “I like you in my face.”

  “I still have to go until being with you feels at least as right as it does wrong.”

  His hands traced her back and sides, sending shudders through her. His arousal, pressed to the pit of her belly, made her feel womanly and strong and needed. For these moments, she was Ben’s and he was hers, but last night’s regrets would come back. She shook her head.

  “Don’t go.” He traced her hairline with his mouth. “Do you want me to say please?”

  “I want to belong, and I never will here. I’m your friend’s wife, your wife’s sister. And I want you in my bed.”

  “Where I need you to be. Urgently.”

  She walked to his door, feeling as if she were climbing hand-over-hand up a slim rope. “I’ll come back tonight to see Tony, but then I have to go home.”

  “You don’t want to stay in that house.”

  “No.” She didn’t bother to lie. “But I’m too confused to stay here, and we’re bound to do something that gives us away.” She turned the doorknob with so much force she hurt her hand.

  Then she went back to her room and got her bags. As she ran down the stairs, she looked back, half hoping Ben would stop her. He didn’t. Even he could see she was right.

  Tears filled her eyes. Being desired felt intense, addictive, precious. She’d struggled not to cry over Faith and Will, feeling foolish and betrayed, trying to find her pride. As she left Ben’s house, the tears streamed down her cheeks. Even crying felt good.

  CHAPTER TEN

  ON TONY’S FIRST morning of day care, Isabel linked arms with her mother and gritted her teeth at the open window that looked into the little boy’s classroom. Her heart broke with strange, tender loss and with pride at Tony’s lack of fear. Fortunately, because of his visits, he just wanted to play.

  In his favorite spot, the art center, he smeared purple paint on a blank sheet of paper. Ben turned from his son, shrugging at Isabel and her parents.

  He came to them, entirely ignored by Tony. George was already ushering Amelia toward the front. Ben wrapped an arm around Isabel and said, “You look angry.”

  “No, strangely sad. He’s growing up. Why does that hurt so much?”

  “Because time goes too fast. Be careful, though. If Tony sees you, he may think he’s supposed to cry. He’s nineteen months old, and we have plenty of firsts to get through still.”

  “You’re happy for a guy who was so uncertain yesterday.” Forgetting caution, she grabbed his lapel.

  “I’m glad he’s happy. What’s to cry about?”

  Isabel opened her hand. “Are you working all day today?”

  “Probably not. I miss him already. I got used to having him around.”

  “Will you come by the house before you pick him up? I’d love to come, too.” She nodded at her parents, already waiting on the sidewalk in the cold.

  “What about Leah? Isn’t she going home today?”

  Her mother-in-law had calmed some. She had still wanted to inspect each box Isabel packed, but she’d broken away early the night before to talk to Ray about Will’s estate. “She’s starting back this morning. She doesn’t like to drive in the dark.” Then Isabel remembered the Realtor. “But Mr. Lofton has papers for me to sign so he can put the house on the market. Maybe you could call me before you come back.”

  Her mother and father, beside Ben’s car, heard the last. “You’ve hired a Realtor?” her mother asked. “Why didn’t you say?”

  “I’ve been busy at the house. I don’t want to think about it by the time I see you all.”

  “What are you planning to do after you sell?” her dad asked. “Are you going back to Middleburg?”

  She avoided Ben. “I’m up in the air. I had a job in Middleburg, but they called a couple of days ago and needed a firm date for my return. I couldn’t give them that so I’m unemployed again.”

  “That’s not right,” her mother said.

  “It is, but I appreciate your outrage, Mom. I’m going to look for a job here. I always loved this place, and I’ve been thinking about a town house in D.C.”

  “I’m glad you’ll still be close to Tony.” Her mother’s smile looked inward. “Your father and I should think of going home soon, but I’ve enjoyed spending so much time with the baby. Ben, let’s try to stay this close.”

  Isabel watched him. Would he be grateful for a stronger family, or would he resist her mother’s attachment to his son?

  “I hope you’ll all come when you can, and I’ll bring Tony up more often. He needs all of us.”

  For the first time, Isabel thought there might be a chance he’d agree to tell the truth. Behind her, the clock on the peaked roof chimed the hour. “I have to go if I want to leave early.”

  “We’ll see you at dinner.” Isabel’s mother walked backward on the wide, pale sidewalk. She reversed to take her husband’s arm. “We’ll celebrate Tony’s first school day.”

  That was what Tony called it—school. At less than two years old, he had a child’s eagerness to “be big” fast.

  “Don’t forget to keep your cell phone with you,” Ben said.

  She looked at him, unable to say all that burned inside her. That she only wanted to be with him and Tony, that everything else, job, future, freedom, had begun to seem less vital. “Okay. I’ll see you later. Can I bring anything, Mom?”

  “Just yourself.”

  Isabel waved at them, her mouth too tight to say goodbye. She got in her car, feeling as naked as the winter trees. This was her family, and she stood between Ben and her parents, guarding a secret that could destroy them all. Its weight grew each day.

  Leah was waiting in her car when Isabel drove up. She climbed out and walked up the steps at Isabel’s side. “I guess today is goodbye.”

  “Not forever, Leah. We’ll stay in touch.”

  “I met with Ray Paine.”

  “Good.” Isabel unlocked the door and let her in. The house, dressed with only Isabel’s things, felt more welcoming. Before this morning, she’d walked in each day and sensed only the lack of love this home had borne like a wound.

  “I won’t stay long, but I wanted to thank you.” Her voice broke. “Ray told me how generous you’ve been with both Tony and me. More than I deserved.” Leah shut the door at their backs. “I know I’ve been—obnoxious, but I tend to panic and say crazy things when I’m upset. I hit back before I know whether I should.”

  Isabel hugged Leah, hoping the worst was over. “If I lost a son, maybe I’d be the same.”

  “Thanks, Isabel,” Leah sai
d through tears. She stepped back and shrugged out of her coat. “I wish I’d seen Tony. He obviously means more to you than I understood, and I think he must have mattered as much to my son.”

  “He did.” Isabel thought of Will without rancor for the first time. She’d never doubted his love for Tony. “He would have provided everything I have for—our nephew—if he’d ever thought he might die so young.”

  “I didn’t know my son at all, and now it’s too late.” Leah seemed unaware she’d begun to cry. “And I’ve treated you horribly since I’ve been here.” She pulled a handkerchief out of nowhere and blew her nose. “Ignore me. I’ll make us some coffee before I go. After I saw Ray, I couldn’t leave with all my bad behavior between us.”

  Isabel hung their coats before she followed her former mother-in-law to the kitchen. “Do you think the house looks right?”

  “You’ll be lucky if you find another place before you sell.” Leah had already placed a filter in the coffeemaker, and she was spooning in coffee. “Will you miss this house?”

  “I thought so for a second when we came in, but it stopped being a happy place a long time ago.”

  “I understand.”

  “Leah, you’ve been struck by lightning.”

  She turned from the counter, smoothing her hands along her sedate black neck-to-calf dress. “Don’t count on the new me lasting. But I am ashamed I treated you as if you were a thief.”

  She always had, really. She’d thought Isabel had stolen her son. Isabel nodded, unwilling to pretend Leah’s accusations hadn’t hurt, but she could forgive, too.

  “I really don’t want to lose touch with you, Isabel. I’m sure I’ll get a little crazy and blame everything on you again, but deep down, I care, and I’d love to know I can talk to you about Will from time to time.” She smiled, running her multiringed hand over her face. “We can talk about you, too.”

  Isabel weakened. “Maybe we’ll always rub each other like sandpaper, but I don’t want to lose you, either.”

  “A sandpaper relationship’s not bad. It’ll keep us on our toes.” She glanced at her watch. “I’d better move.”

  They shared a cup of coffee and parted, declaring a truce.

  “Have a safe trip. Call my cell when you get home.”

  “I will.”

  Isabel waved until she couldn’t see Leah anymore. Then she went back inside and put finishing touches on the house in preparation for Neal Lofton’s visit.

  He came late that afternoon. Isabel had to tell Ben she couldn’t meet him to pick up Tony, and she felt cheated. She signed Lofton’s contracts, and he plunged a For Sale sign into her lawn, assuring her the house would go so fast she’d wonder where she would live.

  She already did.

  She returned to Ben’s house for dinner that night. He asked her if she’d ducked him. Even in small ways they had a lot to learn about trust.

  All the nights after, she visited Tony, but she avoided Ben. Between longing for him, missing her nephew and each night getting more caught up in her newly complex family, Isabel found staying at her own home difficult.

  Three weeks after Tony started day care, Amelia called. “Morning, sweetie— I hope I didn’t wake you.”

  Isabel had already made coffee, read the newspaper and cleaned the house to make it fit for a prospective buyer’s viewing pleasure. These nights she found sleep elusive. Too many thoughts got in the way.

  “I’ve been up awhile, Mom. Are you at Ben’s?”

  “I came to make my cinnamon rolls for Tony.”

  “Mmm, I wish I’d known. Everything okay over there?”

  “Sure. I’m just calling to remind you about Tony’s recital tonight.”

  The Children’s Cottage featured a music teacher who’d put together a program for the children. They were singing at a nearby community center as all the parents and friends of the children wouldn’t fit into their building. Isabel had fended off invites to the event. Even when she heard Tony practicing, she’d blubbered like a baby.

  The poignancy of his big-boy efforts twisted her in knots. She couldn’t help being sorry that Faith would never see her boy singing his song.

  “Isabel, are you still there?”

  “I’m not sure about tonight.”

  “Yes, you are. Tony’s growing up. You’ll be sorry if you miss even one step he takes along the way.”

  “That’s the nail on the head.” And a total relief to admit it out loud.

  “You’ll never lose him. We may have been complacent about seeing him before, but that’s changed. We’ve all learned how unreliable life can be.”

  Isabel’s heart cracked in several places. “I’ll be there.” She was foolish to spend more time with Ben when she couldn’t have him in her life, but her mother would get around to questioning her real motives if she kept staying away.

  “It starts at seven, Mom?”

  “But Ben has to take Tony over at six-thirty.”

  “Okay. See you there.”

  “The school’s putting on a little party afterward.”

  “And the whole family’s invited?”

  “Seems to me you visit Tony, but you’re trying to stay away from the rest of us lately.”

  Her mother’s throwaway remark was just what she’d dreaded. Isabel got off the phone before her mom slipped into interrogation mode.

  For the rest of the day she worked on spinning her volunteer work into a reputable résumé and then called several headhunters. Surprised at how much credit they were willing to give the fund-raisers she’d organized, she agreed to an interview the next day.

  She finally turned off the computer and stood, stretching as she scoured the dark blue sky outside the office window. More snow. Or maybe a thunderstorm. It didn’t look good, but she liked the excitement of violent weather.

  Isabel showered and put on a white wool skirt and a pale blue cashmere cardigan, barely buttoned to the top of her translucent blue bra.

  Against her better judgment, she wanted to look good for Ben. She examined herself in the mirror and saw someone different, someone more willing to put herself at risk. Considering it might be temporary daring on her part, she thought about changing but grabbed her keys and coat. The bell rang as she reached for the door.

  She wasn’t surprised to find Ben. She’d wanted to see him so badly it was as if she’d summoned him.

  “Hey.” His gaze was all male, all appreciation, and he started a flutter of pleasant anticipation inside her. So much for days of trying to be sensible. “I had to take Tony over early and then they threw all the parents out for distracting the children.”

  She pushed her fingers through her hair, aware that newly washed, it was shiny and full of life. “How did you distract the kids?”

  Interest darkened his eyes. “Mrs. Carter tried to put them through their paces, but they were more interested in us.”

  “So you came here.” She was glad and she couldn’t hide her relief.

  With a laugh that was pure foreplay, Ben took her chin in one hand and kissed her, teasing, touching, tasting. She put her arms around him, holding tight.

  “You’ve been avoiding me,” he said, “even in my own house.” Then he pressed his open mouth to her throat. The gentle pull of his kiss robbed her of thought and speech.

  She had to learn each line and plane of his face. He hadn’t shaved since morning, but she liked the friction of his stubble.

  “Answer me,” he said, his hands restless on her back.

  “I am.” She followed the outline of his ear with her lips. His breath escaped in a heady moan, and he slid his hands beneath the hem of her sweater. She could hardly believe she was touching him, but she couldn’t stop.

  “Soft.” The word sounded odd in the unfamiliar tone of his need.

  She loosened his tie and then his collar, desperate to touch him, too. “Ben?”

  “I can’t tell which is softer, this sweater or your skin.” He splayed his hands across her back, making her f
eel small, delicate. At the same time, he lowered his head to the vee her sweater’s open buttons made above her breasts.

  His mouth there should feel wrong. It didn’t. He opened a button.

  She looked down. Her bra hid nothing. She looked at Ben, whose hungry glance seemed to touch her face as well as her breasts.

  “More.” Her own voice, pleading, shocked her.

  “I wish.” Peeling the fragile material of her bra back with one finger, he suckled her flesh. “We have to stop.”

  But stopping didn’t seem to be on his mind. He traced both breasts with tender, trembling fingertips until she was arching into his hands.

  Ben’s shoulder muscles bunched beneath his shirt. Frustration made her groan when, as she reached for his tie again, he caught her hands. “Later.” He stared into her eyes, and his were too dark to read.

  He looked doubtful, as if he knew they should go, but he couldn’t. She wanted to laugh as he kissed her, but holding him, touching him, was too serious. She felt alive. Full of life. “When, later?”

  His smile went straight to her head. “Whenever you ask.”

  “I’m asking.” They both knew she’d beg again.

  “I’m afraid you’ll change your mind when you see your parents.”

  She stiffened. Not only would they be appalled that she could make love with Ben, they’d believe she was taking him from Faith. “You might be right. I’ve tried to stop wanting you, but the second I saw you I changed my mind.”

  He returned to her breast and immediately erased every other human being from her mind. “I won’t let you push me away again.”

  “Don’t sound possessive.”

  He looked at her, his lips moist, forbidden. “You make me feel possessive.”

  Tension poured into the silence between them. “Why did you have to talk?” Easing away, Isabel re-buttoned her sweater. Ben tried to smooth his hair with his hands, but she’d mussed it so well she had to help him. “Do I look like you?”

  His lips thinned. “How do I look?”