Pauli was asleep in the guest room and would be driving back to St. Louis later today, but Pauli was the least of his worries. He left a note for Pauli to have a safe trip and he left for Lane’s.
Much to his surprise, Jess met him in the garage again today; and to his joy, she wasn’t on his case about his proposal. But her tone might have been cool as she said, “Is Parrot Boy still at your place?”
“Yes. He’s going back to St. Louis today, but he was still asleep when I left.” Ben walked toward the door leading into the house. “Go easy on him, he’s not even in your league, you know?”
He knew he needed to apologize to Jess for the scene in the garage last night, but that could wait. Pauli might be his brother, but if things went according to plan, Jess would soon be his step-daughter and that meant she was his to protect. Pauli had watched Ben and learned the way to play the field; working his way through a stable of women and moving on before anyone could sink her hooks in. While Ben knew Jess could handle herself, he didn’t want her to be another notch on Pauli’s stethoscope.
Jamie was in the kitchen. He was a growing teenager and seemed to spend most of his time there. “Bambino, what have you got going today?”
Jamie quit eating long enough to respond. “Jake, Jess and I are going to see if we can figure out why Carol Anne came back to town.”
Jess had come in behind Ben. His comment to her last night had hurt her terribly, but Jess didn’t cry in front of anyone unless it was written in a script either, so no one had seen the tears. She tried to keep the ice from her tone. “You know any of her friends or family that we could talk to?”
“Her folks moved to Florida a long time ago, but she was pretty close to her producer at the radio station. Her name was Beth Morgan and I think she’s still there. They might have stayed in touch. Other than that, I don’t have any idea. Call Tanner if you need help.” He wrote down the cell number for his investigator. “You know the rules. Stay together, pay attention and don’t take any risks,” he said, as he handed the number to Jess. He’d been taking the Parker kids to the paint ball park since soon after their move to Kansas. It was one of those lies of omission that Lane had mentioned yesterday. But now wasn’t the time to confess to that particular little transgression.
“Is your Mom in her room,” he asked, as he made his way toward the hall leading to the bedrooms.
He tapped twice on the door. “You decent,” he said, as he opened the door. She was standing in her closet in nothing but a white lace bra and panties. The sight took his breath away. He closed the door and stood staring at her. Dear God, he may not be able to keep the proposal to himself until he got out of this room.
She smiled at him and grabbed his shoulders saying, “Turn around.” As she kissed the back of his neck she asked, “Where are we going, what are we doing? What shall I wear for this outing?”
“You look good to me now,” he said turning his head to look over his shoulder.
“I can’t go out like this. Be serious.”
He turned and picked her up. “Oh, I am serious,” he said, as he kissed his way from her shoulder to her lips. “I’m very serious.”
She always moaned as their tongues mingled when they kissed, and it was always his undoing. He backed her up until her back was against the wall. She had her arms around his neck and she wrapped her legs around him. “Oh, God, how long did Pauli tell him it would take to get lab results back?” he thought.
She caught her breath and whispered to him. “You need to let me get down so I can get dressed.”
He backed away and let her stand. “Wear a dress, something not too casual, not too dressy.” And he turned back around. He needed to get his hormones under control and he needed to get rid of this erection, so he could walk through the house without embarrassing himself. If he hadn’t been stupid for so long, they could have been married long ago. He looked at the bed. They could be lying in that bed right now, but instead he’d spent the last three years with every wrong woman he could find. Lila Crane’s face popped into his head and he smiled, thinking, “Well, that’s one way to get rid of an erection.” Then said aloud, “Are you dressed yet?”
She tapped him on the shoulder. “Yes. Would you zip me?”
He turned around. She stood with her back to him, holding her hair up in one hand, that white lace underwear peeking out from under a white sheath with small cherries embroidered on it. God, she was beautiful. He pulled up the zipper.
She turned. “I forgot to tell you something this morning,” she said, as she placed her hands on either side of his face and looked him straight in the eyes. “I love you.”
He kissed her. “I love you. Now let’s get out of here, while I can still walk in front of the kids without embarrassing myself.”
She slipped into a pair of red and white sandals. “I have to put a few things in a bag. You go on out and talk to the kids. I’ll be right out.”
She put her phone and wallet into a small envelope purse that was red with a white flap and walked out of her room. Ben was standing in the kitchen waiting for her.
“I’ll be with Ben all day. I have my cell, and you know Ben’s number too. I’ll see you later. Have a good day and try to stay out of trouble.”
Ben held her hand as they walked to his Jaguar. He opened her door and helped her in, before walking around and getting in himself. The little blue Tiffany’s box was tucked into the pocket of his sport coat in the back seat.
He backed out of the driveway and headed north toward the Plaza. He’d decided they could walk around the shops a bit before driving to Papa’s. He turned to her and said, “I have an early lunch planned, so I hope you’re not too hungry yet.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.
He was tracing little circles on the palm of her hand making her tingle to her toes. Last night she had finally spoken the words she’d been afraid to even think. She looked at him. Ben was unbelievably handsome and he loved her. They were listening to Pandora, and Frank Sinatra was singing lowly in the back ground.
“So what’s on the agenda until lunch?” It was almost nine-thirty when they’d left her house.
“Just a leisurely drive through the city until we can stop at the Plaza. You missed shopping and gossiping with your friends yesterday. I’m probably not as much fun to gossip with, but I thought we could stroll around a bit.”
For years, Lane had met friends on the Plaza for brunch, shopping and gossiping. The search warrant the day before had preempted her outing. While she enjoyed the company of her female friends, she had always preferred Ben’s company.
“You may not be as much fun to gossip with, but I’d rather spend the day with you anyway.” She lifted his hand and kissed his palm. “I love you.” She said it almost with surprise.
He’d planned a perfect proposal, but the Tiffany’s box was burning a hole in his pocket. This was going to be a long hour and a half.
Chapter 12
Protecting the Family