style="font-size:15px;"> She pulled her arms in and hugged them close. But no matter how hard she held herself, she knew she would never come close to duplicating the magic of Max’s embrace.
“We brought doughnuts,” C.J. cried, waving the bag around as she entered the living room.
Cari slipped her fake fur shrug over the T-shirt and looked at herself in the mirror. She looked ridiculous, but she didn’t have much choice. It was either this or wrap herself in a bed sheet. So she came out, head held high and smiling.
And then she saw the doughnuts. Her downfall.
“Wow,” she said as C.J. spilled them out onto a plate. “Those look great.”
“Don’t they? We got them at a bakery Randy deals with.”
C.J. looked at her sharply, and she knew she was looking for signs of hanky-panky. The signs might very well be there. Cari was still reeling from Max’s kisses and she didn’t really care who knew it. C.J.’s gaze raked over the giant-size T-shirt with disdain, but Cari met her gaze unblinkingly. Whatever C.J. thought, she wasn’t going to show her any embarrassment. Let her deal with that.
C.J. pursed her lips, but seemed to accept that there was nothing she could do about anything between Max and Cari at the moment, so she let it go.
“Did you know our boy Randy has a catering business?” she said, giving him a quick smile that served to include him in the group.
Cari blinked, looking at the jovial man. “I thought you were a stockbroker.”
“That’s my day job.” He grinned at her and snagged the biggest doughnut.
“He hates it,” C.J. announced to the world at large. “That’s why he started up this little ole catering business on the side. He loves setting up parties.”
“No kidding.” Cari wondered if Mara knew about that side of her husband’s cousin. He looked more like a stockbroker than a caterer, but then, what did a caterer look like?
“Yup. I’m getting him some clients. I know people who give huge parties.”
Cari was impressed. It seemed C.J. had her uses after all. “Wow. Lucky Randy.”
She looked at him. He was grinning happily. It was evident he did feel like a lucky man today. Cari had to laugh inside. She might think Randy a perfect match for herself, but it was pretty obvious he had other plans. C.J. looked just right to him. Poor guy.
But then, how was Randy any more of an object of pity than she was herself? She sighed, feeling ordinary, and turned to the kitchenette to make coffee for the guests.
They were sitting around the table sipping coffee and munching on delicious donuts when C.J. dropped her bombshell.
“Hey, I talked to your mama this morning, Max.”
His head rose sharply and he stared at her in horror. “You did what?”
“I called her. Don’t worry, I paid attention to the time difference. She sure is nice. I just love her.” She darted a particularly smug look Cari’s way. “We had a great talk and we put our heads together and figured out a few ideas for presents you could get her before you go back to Venice. So I’m takin’ you shopping, you lucky boy. I know all the best department stores in Dallas and I’m going to introduce you to them, too. We’ll have a great time.”
“What?” Max sounded like a drowning man.
“Oh, come on, you old meanie,” C.J. said, slapping him playfully on the shoulder. “You want to make your mama happy, don’t you?”
He looked to Cari for help, but she shrugged. “I’m going to be taking care of Jamie all day,” she said serenely. “He needs a bath and then I’m going to take him out in his stroller.”
“You’ll probably need some help,” Max said hopefully.
“Who, me? I don’t think so.” She favored him with a devilish grin. “You’d better go with C.J. and Randy. They’ve obviously got their hearts set on making you come out to play.”
“I’m only going,” Max told her a few minutes later as he finished dressing and prepared to meet the other two in the lobby, “so that I can get a chance to work on C.J. about selling the ranch. I’ve got a new angle I’m going to try on her.”
“Why not just marry the woman and be done with it?” she teased. “I thought this was just a business deal.”
He turned to look at her. “The more time I spend with her the more I realize business like that is a perilous game,” he told her. “But you’re right. I may have to marry her. I’m just going to do everything I can think of to avoid that fate.” He looked back at her seriously as he started out the door. “But bottom line, I’ve got to get control of that ranch.”
Her smile evaporated as the door closed. She hadn’t discerned one little bit of give in C.J.’s position, but maybe Max could find something. She certainly hoped so—for his sake.
Cari called the Copper Penny later in the morning to let them know she was going to take a few days off. She felt guilty leaving them in the lurch, but this was an emergency, and she had some time off she could use. Tito drove her home to pack up some clothes, and on the way back, they stopped at a baby store. Max had given her a credit card and told her to get what she thought they needed. It was a virtual baby wonderland and she ordered an outlandish amount of baby equipment to be delivered to the hotel.
That put her in a great mood. Shopping trips often seemed to have that effect—and something told her she was having a lot more fun than Max was right now.
Taking care of Jamie was a breeze. He was such a sweetheart, so responsive and free with his baby smiles and gurgles, that being with him was a joy. And dressing him in his cute new outfits was fun, too. She was glad he was a boy and about a month older than Michelle had been, so the comparisons and memories, though they did come up and did bring a wave of sadness, didn’t sting the way they might have.
The situation that worried her most right now was the status of this baby. What was going to happen if the DNA result was negative? If Sheila appeared and had a good explanation for where she’d been, she supposed Jamie would go back to his mother and the rest of them would go on with their lives. But what if Sheila was on drugs or something else that made her impossible as a mother to this little angel? That would present its own problems. But there was no point thinking about that. Sheila claimed this was Gino’s baby and there was, so far, no reason to doubt her.
So what if Sheila didn’t return and the test did come back with the result Max was looking for? What would happen then? It was perfectly obvious. Max would pack Jamie up and take off for Venice. She would lose again. Another heartbreak.
No, now she was letting her emotions run rampant. She wasn’t that attached to this child and she wouldn’t let herself be. She was a caretaker, nothing more.
And she wasn’t going to fall in love—with either one of them.
It was midafternoon and Max wasn’t back yet. Jamie was napping peacefully. Cari decided to take a shower. A few minutes later she was luxuriating in the multiple-spray waterfall of the fancy bathroom when she thought she heard
