His coaches, his manager and most of his teammates were happy with his performance. The only one not taking his calls was his agent, and it didn't take a genius to figure out why Yank Morgan was upset. But the old man had sent his niece off to the island knowing full well that, to Damian, nothing came before his career. Yank couldn't possibly think Micki would change his mind-although Damian had to admit she was the only woman who'd ever tempted him to say to hell with his single-minded philosophy.
He found himself thinking of her at the worst moments. When he was in the field during a game, he'd remember her determined face as she pitched to him, how well she caught a ball and how her hair fluttered in the island breeze. He'd always catch his wayward thoughts before he screwed up on the field. Each time he'd push her out of his mind and promise himself no more. Then he'd imagine how much worse it'd be if he had to deal with her on a daily basis, and he'd assure himself that his decision to keep his distance was the right one.
Damian didn't think his agent would want him to screw up the end of his career over a woman. Not even the older man's beloved niece. And since he planned to stay away, Damian figured the old man would thank him for sparing Micki even more pain. Hell, Yank Morgan would come around in the end because, like Damian, he understood the game came first.
As a professional athlete Damian couldn't afford to let his emotions get the better of him. But as he walked into Carole's New York hotel where she'd asked him to meet her, his gut churned and even his chest hairs prickled with unease. Something about her coming to New York and calling him out of me blue just didn't feel right.
She greeted him warmly but her half smile did nothing to put his mind at rest, either,
"Thanks for coming, Damian." She led him into the oversize hotel room, lavishly decorated and probably a lot more expensive than Carole could afford.
Still he wasn't about to pry. "You're looking well," he told her. Not good, well. He chose his words carefully.
Though she looked beautiful as always, he had to be careful to keep his distance, both physically and emotionally. He didn't want her getting any wrong ideas about their relationship. Or lack of one. For him, things between them had ended the night they'd gone to Lacie's joint.
"So why make the trip north?" he asked.
"Sit." She gestured to the fabric-covered chair.
The flowers jumped out at him, big and ugly and as frightening to him as her somber tone of voice.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"Did I ever tell you that my mother never married my father?" She let out a high-pitched laugh. "In fact she never knew who my daddy was."
They were over. Why in God's name were they talking about personal things like her past and scary notions like unmarried, pregnant women? "What's the point?"
She bent down and reached for his hand, "I don't know how to tell you this-“
"Just say it" His heart pounded a mile a minute and icy tentacles of fear crept up his spine.
"I know we used protection but…I'm pregnant." As if on cue, large teardrops fell from her already watery eyes. "And before you ask, yes it's yours."
"I wasn't going to ask," he lied.
She gave him a forced smile. "You're a good and decent man," she said softly and for a split second, guilt for distrusting her crept into his gut.
Then he reminded himself that this was a woman who'd slept with more ballplayers than just him. He'd never asked what she did when he was out of town, which had been most of the time, and she'd never offered details. He should have questioned, he realized now when it was too damned late. She was placing the responsibility squarely in his lap.
Damian was soaking in sweat, worse than when he played in Florida's sweltering heat, but somehow he maintained his composure and didn't let her see how badly his nerves had kicked in.
He ran a shaking hand through his hair. "Look Carole, you must realize this is a shock."
She nodded. "Of course I do. I've had some time to take in the news and you haven't."
"So you know I can't make any decisions right now." Hell, at the moment he couldn't even think clearly.
Only the irony of the situation swirled in his head.
He'd always been so careful. He'd always looked out for himself and the women he was with. Wasn't that the point of protection in the first place?
"Dammit!" He slammed his fisted hand against the cocktail table, rattling the drinking glasses.
Carole wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his shoulder. To her credit, she didn't try anything sexual. She merely touched him, emphasizing that they were in this together.
He patted her back uselessly. He didn't know how to help her, let alone how to help himself. "I need to go."
She rose to her feet "I understand."
He drew himself upright. "I'll be in touch," he managed to promise.
"I know you will. You're a good man, Damian."
Her calm behavior was baffling him and he narrowed his gaze. The Carole he knew was all about how she looked and what she could get out of life. She epitomized the idea of me.
So why didn't the idea of having an unwanted baby have her ranting and raving? And why did she keep extolling his virtues? The answer was obvious. Because she wanted something from him. Whether it was marriage or money or something else, he wasn't going to sit here and try to figure out what right now. He needed to be alone to decide what he wanted.
Damian headed for the door and only began breathing again when he was solo in the hallway. Out of the blue, his entire life was in upheaval and nothing made sense.
One thing he did know with unqualified certainty- he didn't want to spend the rest of his life saddled with Carole as his wife.
MICKI NEEDED A SOCIAL LIFE. She needed something to think about other than her time on an island off the Florida coast with Damian. Not even waiting for Lola to talk to Spencer Atkins about a merger was enough to distract Micki's thoughts. Resigned to getting no agency work done while she was in this kind of mood, she turned to personal business instead.
First she e-mailed Sophie to see if she wanted to have dinner tonight, then she picked up the phone and scheduled a few appointments she had on her to-do list. Just when she couldn't think of anything else to occupy her mind, her office intercom rang.
She pushed the reply button. "Yes?"
"You have an unscheduled visitor," her secretary announced.
She shrugged. Whoever it was, it was better than sitting alone. "Send them in."
Micki stood at the same time the door opened and Damian walked in. Her heart leaped inside her chest and an amazing feeling of happiness surrounded her,lifting the cloud that had settled on her shoulders since they'd parted at the airport.
She'd been deprived and now she wasn't, and she shamelessly took in his appearance. He wore a pair of faded Levi's that did little to disguise the muscles beneath the jeans, along with a solid white T-shirt that accented his tan. He still had the scruffy beard she loved but his eyes were dim and he looked troubled. More troubled than the man she'd last seen worrying about his career, and she wondered what was bothering him.
She couldn't suppress the fleeting hope that maybe he'd missed her and that was why he'd come by. Heaven knew she'd missed him.
She strode around her desk, trying for a casually unaffected tone as she greeted him. "Hi there."
"Hey." He shut the door behind him. As he smiled, his gaze scanned her body for as long as she'd studied his. "You look great," he said at last.