fact, he’s not real big on the bachelor lifestyle. But then, when we broke up, well, he would have considered it a point of honor, to prove to himself that he was over me.”
Kelly shook her head. “Did I already say the word jerk?”
“You did. And I said he’s not. He’s just…well, you’d have to know him.”
Her sister wisely withheld comment. They ate in silence for a few minutes. Finally, Kelly spoke. “So the two of you got together…?”
“Six months after he hired me, when his divorce became final.”
“He was married?”
“To his childhood sweetheart. But she dumped him and ran off with some European guy. I was just burning hot for him. And I was lying in wait for those final divorce papers to come in the mail. Then I seduced him. It’s a plain, shameless fact.”
Kelly chuckled, “My bad baby sister.”
“Oh, yeah. I was so sure I could show him what real, true love could be.” Hayley shook her head. “So much for that.” She bit into her grilled chipotle chicken sandwich and chewed slowly. The last month or two, with the baby taking up so much space in there, eating fast meant heartburn later.
“So what did his new, older assistant have to say?” Kelly buttered a sourdough roll.
“She was just telling me a platinum card was on the way, wanting to know where I banked so she could arrange for a giant-sized wire transfer of funds.”
“Money,” Kelly said thoughtfully. “Well, it comes in handy, you gotta admit.”
“It sure does. I suppose I should be more grateful, huh?”
Kelly chuckled. “Oh, hell no. He should be grateful, to have a beautiful, smart, capable, loving woman like you as the mother of his child.”
“I’ll tell him you said that.”
“Do.”
“He’s just a little messed over, that’s all. From the awful childhood he had, from his marriage that didn’t last forever, after all. I should embroider myself a sampler and hang it on the wall….”
“Saying?”
“‘There’s no saving a messed-over guy, so you’re better off not to even try.’” Hayley chuckled, a sound devoid of humor. “Hey. It rhymes.”
“Pure poetry.”
“Kelly?”
“Umm?”
“Do you think I’m messed over? You know, from the way I grew up?”
Kelly shrugged. “Maybe a little. But we all are, I’m sure. You, me, big brother Tanner—and all the other poor, lost souls who had crazy, bad Blake Bravo for a dad. Think about it.” Blake had married a lot of women. And given them children. Each woman had thought she was the only one. And they all found out much later, after the notorious Blake finally died and it was all over the national news, that there were other wives. Several. Some no doubt were yet to be found—along with the children they’d borne him. “None of us ever knew our father,” Kelly continued, “even the ones who saw him now and then. Because he wasn’t the kind that anybody really knows. And then, we all had mothers with emotional issues. That’s a given. Remember Mom.”
“God. Mom. Yeah.” Lia Wells Bravo had been frail both physically and emotionally, the perfect target for Blake Bravo’s dangerous brand of charm. One by one, she put the children he gave her during his infrequent visits into foster homes. Lia told all three they had no siblings. And though she wouldn’t take care of them herself, she refused to give them up for adoption.
“It’s just a sad fact,” Kelly said. “Anybody who’d fall in love with a man like Blake Bravo would have had to be at least a little bit out of her mind.”
“You’re not exactly reassuring me, you know.” Hayley sipped her Perrier.
“Sorry…”
“It’s so depressing, just thinking about Mom. I hate that I never understood her. And now she’s gone, I probably never will.” She looked down at her sandwich and knew she ought to eat more of it. “Did I mention that Marcus’s childhood was terrible, too?”
“You did. Have you met his parents?”
“They’re both long dead. His mother died when he was a kid, some kind of accident. Marcus was never really clear on what happened to her, exactly. His father was a drunk and Marcus despised him. He got millions when his dad died. Marcus put it all away, hasn’t touched a penny of it. He has it set up so it funds a bunch of charities. The whole Kaffe Central thing? He built that himself. Starting from a corner coffee shop in Tacoma where he went to work as a manager straight out of college.”
“Kaffe Central. You said it’s like Starbucks, right?”
Hayley leaned across the table. “Never,” she commanded darkly, “compare the Kaffe Central experience to Starbucks.” And then she grinned. “But, yeah. Helpful, skilled baristas. Quality coffee. Lattes to die for, whipped up just the way you want them. Amazing ambience—special, but…comfortable. Selected bakery treats.”
“Wi-Fi?”
“As a matter of course. Oh, and it’s a progressive company, too. Good working conditions, good salaries, everybody gets stock options, good benefits including health insurance. And from what Marcus said, you’ll have one in your neighborhood soon. They’re opening several shops here in the Sacramento area.”
“Can’t wait—and he sounds…like a complex man.”
“He is. And determined. Way determined. Now he knows about the baby, he’s going to be pushing me to do things his way. And I mean everything.”
“Marriage?”
Hayley laughed. “Are you kidding? After what his ex, Adriana, did to him, Marcus has sworn he’ll never get married again.”
“But now that he’s going to be a dad…”
“Not Marcus. No way, not even with a baby coming. He may push for full custody, though.”
Kelly scoffed. “But I thought you said he didn’t even want kids.”
“He didn’t. But now it’s happening, it’s all going to be about doing the right thing, whatever he decides the right thing may be. He can be…cold. Distant. There’s an emotional disconnect there that can be way scary. But he does have an ingrained sense of fair play. So my guess is he’ll probably be willing to share custody.”
“Big of him.”
“But he’ll want me to move back to Seattle, you watch. And he’s already been on me to quit work immediately.”
“Don’t let him scare you. We can sic Tanner on him.” Their older brother was a private investigator. Strong. Silent. Smart. Possibly as determined as Marcus. And extremely protective of his
