she suspected he was going to check them out. For a few seconds it appeared she might get angry, but, instead, she simply told him she would invite them to the house that night.
Within seconds after their arrival, he found himself seated on a stiff-backed chair across the sofa from four very curious, not-too-pleasant women, and for the first time since he made up his mind to interrogate them he wondered about the wisdom of it.
“So, Savannah tells me that she told you all the specifics of our marriage,” he said, opening the conversation with truth since there was no way around it.
Not one of them smiled. Not one gave him an even semi-friendly look. His gaze moved from the two blue-eyed redheads to the blonde, to the last woman with the dark hair and serious eyes.
Though all four of them stared at him as if he were the angel of death, only Lindsay, the blonde, replied. “Yes. She told us that she was marrying you to preclude bad press which might hurt your father.”
Though he tried to fight the ludicrous urge to defend himself, since it was her brother who had put them in this precarious position, he failed. “I could press charges against Barry, you know.”
“Except that would be trouble for your father,” Lindsay said. Her eyes were sharp, observant and her tone was clearly adversarial. If he were taking guesses, right now he would put money on the bet that this one would be an attorney someday.
“Yes, it would. But that doesn’t negate the fact that I’ve made some concessions, too.”
“Not as big as Savannah’s concessions. If you look at this situation objectively,” Lindsay said, “Savannah is giving up much more because she’s forced to leave her home, which also happens to be her place of business, and ask her friends to run it while she’s gone so she can live with you.”
“I don’t mind,” Savannah said, unexpectedly jumping into the conversation on his side.
Ethan cast her a sidelong glance, glad she spoke up. Her quick agreement proved she understood his logic, but it was also the first time they were on the same side. And it felt right. Good. Unfortunately, it also gave him a tingly feeling in the pit of his stomach, which he liked a little more than he should.
“Her living with me is the only way this really works.”
“That may be true,” Becki said. “But I can’t help but feel that you’re somehow punishing Savannah for a crime her brother committed.”
Not one to let a good opportunity pass, Ethan leaped on that. “Which is my point exactly. Her brother is the one who committed this crime, but my father is the one who will suffer if word of this gets out. Can I trust you?” he asked, looking from one woman to the next until he was sure he had their complete attention. “Can I trust that none of you will sell this story to a tabloid?”
Becki gasped, “Sell this story to a tabloid?”
“That’s exactly what I said.”
“It appears, Mr. McKenzie,” Andi said, “that you don’t have a clue how friendship works.”
“I know how friendship works, but none of you is my friend. And it’s my father who is in trouble. I need to know that I can trust you or there’s no reason for Savannah and me to get married. And if there’s no reason for Savannah and me to get married, all bets are off on this baby.”
Silence covered the room like a cloak. Though Ethan hadn’t come right out and made a threat, everybody knew what he referred to when he said all bets are off on this baby. He glanced at Savannah, who sat perfectly still and silent. Though she wasn’t trying to sway the opinion of the four women in her living room, she wasn’t condemning him, either. She seemed to understand that he had no choice but to use the power at his disposal. And though she could have argued or cried, or even made her own threats, she did nothing. Said nothing. Which gave Ethan another odd tingly sensation. He wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.
Finally, Mandi said, “We’ll keep your secret, as long as you’re fair with Savannah.”
Ethan nodded. “I never had any intention of being anything but fair. But there’s a lot at stake here, and I’m taking some pretty big chances, too. This is the deal Savannah and I struck. You guys are just going to have to trust me the same way she does.”
Even as the words were coming out of his mouth, Ethan couldn’t believe he said them. Not only had he admitted that he knew Savannah trusted him, and that’s why she hadn’t said or done anything when he made his threat, but also he had switched from making sure they kept the secret, to pleading his case because he wanted their approval. Why? Because it was obvious they loved Savannah and he didn’t want them to worry about her.
“Does anybody want coffee?” Savannah asked, bouncing from her seat.
Ethan guessed she had done that hoping that if she disturbed the group at this point in the conversation they might consider it closed. And closed on a satisfactory ending—with him telling them they could trust him. Since they had already said they would keep his secret, he couldn’t think of a better way to end it himself.
“It’s a little late in the day for coffee for me,” Ethan said, doing his part to close the discussion. “But I wouldn’t mind something cold.”
“Neither would I,” Becki said, rising. “Except you’re not getting it,” she added, nudging Savannah back down to her chair. “Mandi and I will get the drinks.”
“Yeah, and Andi and I will get out the cards,” Lindsay said, as she rose from the sofa. She looked at Ethan. “You do play poker?”
“I play poker,” Ethan said cautiously.
“Good,” Andi said, more or less directing everybody to a game table in the back of the room.
But when Andi and Lindsay were out of hearing distance, Savannah stopped Ethan by placing her fingers on his forearm. “You don’t have to play. This is just how we amuse ourselves since Thurmont’s not exactly a bustling metropolis.”
“I don’t mind,” Ethan said, and realized that he didn’t. Wacky thoughts were running through his mind. He had just butted heads with four women who should be thanking him for coming up with a plan that protected everybody, but he almost didn’t care. The fierce loyalty Savannah inspired touched Ethan because he knew it proved something. Savannah Groggin was a genuinely good woman.
“Ethan?”
“Yes?” he said, then, forced out of his reverie, saw Andi was losing patience with waiting for him to accept the cards from her. Through the course of his musings, the sodas had been distributed, and everybody was waiting for him to deal.
“Sorry.” He took the cards and began to shuffle, but he couldn’t stop his gaze from wandering over to Savannah. He should be pleased to constantly get confirmation of her virtue, but it only complicated the attraction he felt for her. He knew the genesis of his feelings was her pregnancy—because she was carrying his child he felt intimate with her. The puzzling, almost alarming part was that with confirmation came the realization that she was the same woman he had worked with two years ago. And realizing she was the same woman, he felt closer to her—which deepened the sense of intimacy.
Worse, as the intimacy deepened, his feelings about their impending marriage were changing. Suddenly he was thinking that
