Текст книги "A Few Broken Rules"
Автор книги: Kate Kane
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Текущая страница: 4 (всего у книги 14 страниц)
Chapter 8
Ben was pensive, torn between suggesting he ride with Tanner so they could talk privately and wanting to gather his family close, when Jamie spoke up, saying he’d ride with Tanner. Tanner waited for a signal from Ben before he agreed. He knew Ben wanted to protect Jamie and that Ben’s first thought would be that no one could do it as well as he could.
They walked outside. Ben opened Lane’s door and helped her into the Escalade as Jamie and Tanner walked out to Tanner’s SUV.
As Ben backed out of the garage and reached for Lane’s hand, he said, “All right, spill. I can hear the wheels turning.”
Lane looked at him. He knew her so well. “I was just thinking about Roy. Is he married?”
“No, Tanner’s a widower. Why do you ask?”
“I was just wondering if he had plans for Thanksgiving. Earlier today, I invited Meg and her family to join us Thursday.” She smiled. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re in-laws before too long, so I thought it might be nice to get to know her family. Besides, at this point, what difference would a few more people make?”
Ben gave her hand a squeeze. He knew that Jake was doing more than just thinking about proposing to Meg. Jake had come to him a couple of weeks ago to get some advice about buying an engagement ring. Ben had directed him to a salesman at Tiffany’s; and Ben had called the salesman himself to give the guy a heads-up that Jake Parker was a member of Ben’s family. “He’s like a son to me. Take good care of him.” Ben had told the salesman.
Since Ben exercised his Black American Express card there frequently since he had begun dating Lane, he was sure the salesman understood what he was saying. Then Ben had told Jake that he’d be doing some Christmas shopping there himself and suggested that Jake come along. Jake had taken him up on the offer and the two of them had dropped in last weekend.
*****
Ben had done introductions and the salesman had discussed the four c’s (Cut, Clarity, Color, and Carat weight) of diamond buying with Jake. Ben had told Jake that the old standard of spending two month’s salary on an engagement ring was just that, old. The important thing was to buy something Meg would love and to stay within the price range that Jake had in mind.
“You don’t need to go into debt to buy the ring.” He’d told Jake.
Ben knew that Lane had paid for college so that Jake didn’t have any student loans he needed to pay off. He also knew Lane had given Jake money from the trust she’d learned about a few months ago and that Jake had bought a house with it. Chances were that Jake had a sizable nest egg he could use for the engagement ring.
Jake nodded, “I see a lot of couples shopping for rings together, but you bought Mom’s ring on your own. How did you know what she’d like? I don’t want to open the box and have Meg look at the ring like it’s the ugliest thing she’s ever seen.”
Ben shook his head. “I’d known your Mom for a while, and I had been noticing her jewelry all along. But, I also had an idea of what I wanted to say with an engagement ring. I love your Mom, and I knew she loved me so, I was as confident as I could be that she’d be happy with what I designed. What have you noticed about the jewelry Meg wears?”
Jake shook his head. There was a look of utter confusion on his face. “I’ve never seen her wear a ring, so I’m flying in the dark.”
Ben offered an encouraging smile, “But she wears other jewelry. Earrings, a watch, a necklace. Something. What do those look like? Your Mom wears classic jewelry. Jess wears either bold and modern or vintage jewelry. What does Meg’s jewelry look like?”
Jake thought about it for a few minutes. “More like Mom’s than like Jess’s, that’s for sure.”
The salesman, Evan, took them to a private room and began by showing Jake the shapes: round, princess, pear, heart, emerald, asscher, oval, marquise, cushion, and radiant. He laid a one-carat stone in each shape on the velveteen pad in front of Ben and Jake. Jake quickly eliminated the heart, pear, and emerald shapes.
“How do you choose something classic and still get something that she won’t see on every other woman’s hand?” He asked, struggling with self-imposed pressure to pick the perfect ring.
“Round and princess are the two most popular shapes.” The salesman had told him. “They will never go out of style. The oval is classic and yet has a little edginess. It accentuates the hand and creates a slenderizing affect.”
Jake had eventually narrowed it to the oval or the cushion. All he had to do now was look at settings. They’d spent the better part of Sunday afternoon looking at stones. Jake had eventually settled on a cushion cut and had chosen a stone just over one carat. Evan had shown him settings and he’d chosen one that had small round diamonds around the center stone and had more small round diamonds on the shank. Evan hadn’t asked what Jake’s budget was, and Jake hadn’t spoken of it. When the total had come to nearly thirty thousand dollars, Jake hadn’t batted an eye; he’d held out his credit card and made the purchase.
Ben had promised Jake that he wouldn’t tell Lane. Perhaps it was another case of a lie of omission, but he planned to honor his promise to Jake. Ben didn’t know when Jake was planning to pop the question, but until he did, Ben wasn’t going to say anything to anyone about that shopping trip.
*****
Lane wasn’t surprised to see Jake standing next to his Chevy Silverado truck as they pulled into the parking lot. She also wasn’t surprised to see Meg and Abbey Kelly with him. Ben parked the Escalade, walked around the SUV, opened Lane’s door, and helped her get out. Little Abbey broke free from her mother and ran toward Lane. Ben scooped her up and held her so she could kiss her MizWane. Abbey who would soon be three years old was talking better every time they saw her, but she still had a little trouble with her L’s. Lane smiled remembering how shy Abbey had been when they’d first met almost four months ago. She’d come a long way since then.
Abbey squirmed and looked at Ben. “I walk now.” She said, and Ben let her down. She immediately reached for Lane’s hand.
They walked into Papa’s where Ben’s father, Dante Bellini, greeted them, hugging Lane, and kissing her on both cheeks. He tucked Lane’s arm in the crook of his elbow and walked the group back to the Board Room, which was the private dining room for the members of the Bellini family and their guests.
Although Meg had attended Ben and Lane’s wedding reception in the Ballroom at Bellini’s, it was her first time in the Board Room. She’d grown up in Kansas City and had heard the whispered rumors about the Bellini family being part of the mafia for as long as she could remember. The rumors didn’t fit with the family, as she knew them. Sure Jess Parker had called Ben’s cousin Daniela a couple of months ago, and asked her to handle the situation with Meg’s ex-boyfriend. Daniela had come with her father, Vincenzo Luciano. They’d wanted to take DNA samples, and when Meg had confessed that Scott Coyle was the only man she had ever had sex with, it seemed to be beside the point. Uncle Vinnie had told her, “You’d be surprised what DNA tests might show” as he’d taken a cheek swab from Jake and had Meg do the same with Abbey. He’d given the samples to Ben’s youngest brother, Pauli who was a doctor, and spoken something in Italian. A couple of days later, Daniela had called Meg’s ex, and gotten him to believe that Abbey was Jake’s daughter and that he needed to leave them alone. At the time, Meg’s only thought was keeping her abusive ex-boyfriend away from her daughter and she really hadn’t cared how it came about. It had worked and she had neither seen nor heard from Scott Coyle since.
Jake scooped Abbey up as they walked toward the Board Room. Meg glanced from her daughter to Jake. Abbey was a blonde haired, blue-eyed, cherub who easily could have been the child of the tall, blonde haired, blue-eyed man who carried her, except for two small things. First, she hadn’t even known Jake when Abbey was born and second, she still hadn’t had sex with Jake. She might have had a child “out of wedlock” but she was far from what anyone could call promiscuous.
Chapter 9
As everyone else took seats around the table, Ben excused himself and went into the kitchen. His brother Tony was the head chef at Bellini’s. It was common knowledge that Tony bet on sports. If anyone had information on the sports betting and the odds on the state championship game, it would be Tony. The kitchen was full of people and as usual when others were around, the Bellini brothers communicated in Italian.
“Hey, Bro. Qual è la linea della partita di campionato?” Ben asked.
Tony continued to direct the kitchen staff as he turned to face his brother. “È rockhurst u. a 2 touchdown perché ciò che sta accadendo? Sì desidera fare una scommessa?”
Ben knew Coach Ferguson’s death would be on the news at six and again at ten, but he knew Tony would still be in the kitchen long after both airings. “Non hai sentito che l'allenatore di calcio è stato ucciso oggi? Sarà che cambia nulla?”
“Che potrebbe cambiare le cose.” Tony said as he continued to point and yell to his kitchen staff.
“Grazie, I’ll let you get back to work.” Ben turned, left the kitchen, and walked back through the door into the Board Room.
Tanner looked at him gauging Ben’s face hoping to see if he could figure out what Ben had just learned from Tony. Ben gave his head a slight shake as he sat next to Lane.
Dante Bellini stopped by the table again after their food was served to see if everyone was doing all right. He didn’t usually stop by the tables in the Board Room the way he did in the main dining room, but he could tell there was something going on, even before he’d gone into the kitchen and talked to Tony. Tony had told him about the football coach’s murder, and Dante had gone into his office and turned on the television to catch the news. It was reported that Coach Ferguson had been found by one of his students. Dante didn’t have to be a detective to know the student who found him was sitting in the Board Room right now. He’d called his brother-in-law Sal Luciano and they’d had a conversation about Ben getting the call and dropping everything to go protect his son. Dante smiled; pleased about the way Ben had stepped into the role of father to the Parker Kids after his marriage only a few weeks earlier. Dante inclined his head toward the kitchen and Ben excused himself from the table and followed his father.
They slipped into Italian.
“The boy found the body?” He asked Ben as soon as the door to the kitchen closed.
“Yes, and yesterday someone poisoned one of the players. It was lucky that Jamie found him when he did. The boy’s alive and he’ll be fine.” Ben replied.
Dante nodded. “What can we do?”
Ben smiled. “Jamie’s not happy about it, but we have Tanner on protection detail when I can’t be with him. I’m sure school is cancelled for tomorrow, and I can work from home. I don’t think it’s anything personal against Jamie, but I’m not happy that he’s the one who was first on the scene both times. Tanner and I think it’s about the championship game Friday. We’re both working angles to figure it out.”
Dante smiled. “Mama and I are here if you need anything.”
Ben nodded. “Jess is coming home tomorrow and Lane is taking the day off. I think we just need to be sure he’s not alone and we need to keep him busy so he doesn’t have time to think about it.”
Dante nodded his understanding.
Ben inclined his head toward the Board Room, “I’d better get back. I’ve stepped into the kitchen twice tonight. Lane’s going to start wondering what I’m doing.”
As Ben turned to go back to the Board Room, Dante pushed a CD into the sound system and pushed the play button. “Make them think you’ve been back here cooking up a surprise. Go ask your bride to dance.”
It was the CD that Ben had playing when he’d proposed to Lane. Ben smiled at his father. “With pleasure. Thanks.”
Ben walked back to the table. “Dance with me.” He said as he extended his hand to Lane.
She took his hand and stood. The main dining room didn’t have a dance floor, but the Board Room did and this wasn’t the first time that they had used it.
Jake looked at Meg and inclined his head toward the dance floor. Meg nodded and stood. Abbey reached her hands up. Jake laughed, and as he picked her up, he said. “I guess I get to dance with two beautiful girls.”
Ben smiled as he watched Jake carry Abbey to the dance floor. Remembering that it was the way he and his siblings first learned to dance. Before they were big enough to dance with a partner, they had “danced” as their parents held them. His parents, Dante and Teadora Bellini, had taught him and all four of his siblings children to dance, and it suddenly occurred to Ben that while he and Lane had been dancing here and at home for months now, he’d never asked her where she learned.
In a low and sexy whisper he said, “So, Red, are you just naturally good at following my lead, or did you have lessons sometime in your past?”
Lane, who had her head against his chest as they danced, leaned back to look at Ben and gave a coy smile. “Well, darling, I’m just good at following your lead.”
Ben could tell there was more to the story, but replied, “Yes, on and off the dance floor.” He laughed and kissed the top of her head, “But really, where did you learn to dance?”
Lane smiled. “Really, Philip and I took ballroom dancing lessons. The place where we took lessons had a mixer where we went to dance almost every Sunday night.”
Ben loved to dance, and it seemed few women really knew how. It was just one more way that he considered himself lucky.
Jamie and Tanner sat alone at the table. Jamie looked at Roy Tanner. “Mr. Tanner?”
“What is it, Jamie?’
“What are you and Dad going to do tomorrow to figure out who killed Coach?”
Tanner looked at Jamie. “That depends.” He looked at his watch. “I’ll give the detectives a call after dinner and see if they have anything they’re willing to share. Depending on what I get from Duncan, I’ll decide what steps I want to take next. Don’t worry about anything, Jamie. We’ll figure this thing out.”
“I know. It’s just that I think I want to help. I thought maybe since you’re school’s cancelled tomorrow and you’re on protection detail, that I could hang out with you tomorrow.”
It was all Tanner could do to swallow his coffee instead of choke on it. Ben would kill him if anything happened to Jamie and even if by some miracle, Ben didn’t kill him, he’d never forgive himself.
Yet, he still heard himself say, “Call me in the morning, and we’ll talk about what’s going on.” As he handed a business card with his cell number on it to Jamie.
Chapter 10
In the weeks since the wedding, Ben and Lane had worked through most of the things that rock households when two people who are used to doing everything themselves are suddenly merged together. Even the seemingly small mundane things like doing laundry, cooking, and shopping had been an adjustment for each of them. Ben sent everything but underwear and workout clothes out to a laundry service or the dry cleaner. He even sent his linens out to a service. Ben and Lane had very definite ideas about how to do their personal laundry, and they had agreed they should each continue to do their own. Lane had insisted that her children learn to do their own laundry by the time they had turned 12, so Jamie continued to handle his own clothes.
Ben had a cleaning service come in weekly to take care of the house and just because he had a wife now, he saw no reason that Lane should take over the cleaning duties. That had been a welcome adjustment for Lane. Ben had a service, Grocerygopheropks.com, who did his grocery shopping and Lane welcomed that too. Naturally, Ben shared the cooking duties; growing up with a family in the restaurant business had made Ben a fabulous cook and he made dinner at least twice a week.
Both Lane and Ben were both taking Wednesday off. Jess was coming home and Lane would be making an airport run sometime in the early afternoon. Ben planned to work in his home office for part of the day since he was still doing some pre-trial prep.
Ben slept in a bit Wednesday morning, but he was still up, had done his 10-mile run, finished his work out, and was back in the master suite. It was nearing eight o’clock when he paused in the bedroom to watch Lane as she slept, before quietly going into the bathroom to shave and shower.
He was standing in the shower his eyes closed with his face turned toward the rain showerheads in the ceiling when he felt her hand on his back. He turned and caught her in his arms. “Reducing our carbon foot print, are we?” He said and then began nuzzling her neck. Ben loved his wife and was glad to find her in the shower with him. Generally, it meant great shower sex quickly followed by a second round of more leisurely sex in their bed, which Ben often followed with a quick shower to get rid of the messy hair caused by the activity in the bed. This morning followed that delightful pattern.
He stepped out of his second shower, went to his closet to dress, and went back into the bedroom expecting to find Lane getting dressed. She wasn’t in the bedroom, and Ben heard sobs coming from her closet. Ben found her, sitting on the floor, wearing only her underwear, crying. He sat on the floor next to her, put his arms around her, and held her as he rocked gently back and forth.
As he stroked her hair, he murmured. “Shhh, don’t cry. Whatever it is, I’ll fix it.”
He was worried that she was having a delayed reaction to Jamie finding a body yesterday. When he got her calmed enough to talk, she told him that her jeans were too tight and she was barely three months along and while she wasn’t trying to hide her pregnancy from anyone, she didn’t want to have to start wearing maternity clothes yet. His solution was simple; he reached into his pocket and produced a Black American Express card. A shopping spree for what he called tween clothes was in order. He could go with her or she could take Jess. Either way, the card, he handed her, had her name on it.
She looked up at him, tears still welling up. “Why are you so good to me?”
He shook his head. “God, Red. I love you and that’s all that matters.” He waved his hand around signifying the nearly 6000 square foot house that had been his and was now theirs. “Everything else is just stuff.”
She started crying again and he picked her up and carried her to their bed. He went into the bathroom, got a face cloth, and sat on the bed holding her hand as he smoothed the cool damp cloth across her forehead and around her eyes.
“I love you.” She said when she’d finally gained control again. “It’s just the hormones.”
He kissed her forehead. “I love you. I’m here, Red, whatever we need to do. Whatever it takes. Whatever it costs. I just hate to see you cry.”
She smiled at him. She knew it was hormone overload. After all, this was her fourth pregnancy and while the last one had been almost 18 years ago, she could still remember the crying jags that could be triggered by anything or by nothing at all.
He smoothed a lock of hair away from her face and kissed her again. God, sometimes he couldn’t believe how much he loved her. “Everything’s going to be fine.” He’d do everything humanly possible to make sure of it. “What time does Jess get in today?” He asked, knowing full well when Jess’s flight would land. He just wanted to get Lane to focus on something else.
“Her flight gets in at one. I’ll leave here around noon to pick her up.”
Ben glanced at the clock. It was almost nine o’clock. He needed to talk to Tanner and see what he’d found out overnight. He had seen Jamie in their home gym earlier and knew he was probably in the kitchen. During football season, it seemed like they couldn’t keep enough food in the house for Jamie.
“I need to check in with Tanner this morning, but maybe I can go with you to get Jess.” He wondered if he should say anything about helping her find something to wear. He rubbed her abdomen and even though she was lying on her back, there was a definite bump.
She saw his thoughtful smile as he rubbed her baby bump. It seemed to have expanded overnight. She smiled. She could almost hear the Italian macho voice in his head. “This is my baby.” She tugged his arm so he lay next to her and she nestled against him. “I have some leggings and a long sweater I can throw on for now. Maybe Jess and I can shop this afternoon for a couple of things. There’s no way I’m going near the mall after today for at least a week, maybe longer.”
He knew what she meant. He had always thought that a person would have to be crazy to go near the mall anytime during Thanksgiving weekend. Yet, they were going to be in St. Louis Friday night and Saturday, and he hated to waste a trip to St. Louis. He could always stand to order another Brioni suit from Neiman’s.
Ben loved his wife beyond anything he ever thought was possible and he would like nothing better than to stay in bed and hold her in his arms for the rest of the day, yet he had things that needed to be done today. He kissed her gently. “Let me check-in with Tanner while you dress and then maybe we can go out and grab some breakfast.”
“Remember to invite him for Thanksgiving dinner.” Lane called as Ben closed the bedroom door.
Ben went into his home office, picked up the phone, and dialed Tanner’s cell phone.
“Tanner.”
“Any news?”
“Nothing new from the police. I have feelers out to some people on the odds angle; did Tony point you to his bookie?”
“He didn’t need to give me the name, I know who it is. I’ll make that phone call today.”
“I still want to do some checking on the assistant coach. Jamie asked me last night if he could hang with me today. If it’s all right with you and his Mother, I thought I’d let him ride shotgun today. Maybe I can find out more about the team, see if there are any rifts between the coach and any of the players or the coach and parents.”
“Yeah, that would keep him out of danger and give Lane and Jess some girl time this afternoon. Let me check with him and Lane. I’ll call you back.”
Ben ended the call and walked to the kitchen where he found both Lane and Jamie. “Hey, Bambino. I’m planning on taking your mother out for breakfast.” He said as he patted Jamie’s shoulder. “Would you like to join us or would you rather hang out with your protection detail for the day?”
Almost nothing kept Jamie from eating and Lane was surprised when she heard him say, “I’ll hang with Mr. Tanner. I can call him. He gave me his cell number last night.”
Jamie stepped away from the kitchen table and used his cell to call Tanner.
“Tanner.”
“Mr. Tanner? It’s Jamie Parker. My folks say I can hang with you for the day.”
Tanner laughed. “Okay, Kid. I’m on my way there now. I should be there in about ten minutes.”
Jamie ended the call and turned to face Ben and Lane. “He’ll be here in about ten minutes. You guys could go to breakfast now if you want. I’ll be fine until he gets here.”
“Bambino, there’s no doubt about that, but I need to talk to Tanner, and if he’s that close we’ll just wait until he’s here.”
Jamie eyed Ben suspiciously, thinking the truth was that they didn’t want to leave Jamie alone. God, he’d be glad when this mess was sorted out and he could get back to a normal life. He’d been the baby of the family for a long time and was used to the way the family sometimes still treated him as though he was six, and he’d be glad to relinquish his “title” to the new baby of the family when he or she arrived.
Lane went into the bedroom and pulled on a pair of riding boots that would look good with the leggings and sweater she’d put on earlier. She had just grabbed her purse and tucked her new American Express card into her wallet when her cell phone rang. She checked the caller ID as she picked it up and pushed the talk button.
“Jess? What’s up?”
“I just wanted to let you know that I’m bringing someone home with me for Thanksgiving.”
“Jess, you know that’s fine. The more the merrier. I’ll pick you up at 1:00.”
“No, Mom, Gabe wants to rent a car.”
Lane caught her breath. Her daughter was bringing Gabe Greer, Grammy Award winning singer, star of TV and film, home for Thanksgiving. She smiled, thinking she’d probably better get used to it. Now that her daughter was about to be a big film star herself, her circle of friends was expanding.
“Okay. Then we’ll see you when you get here. Have a safe flight. Love you, bye.”
“Love you too, Mom. See you soon.”
Lane walked into the kitchen to find Roy Tanner enjoying a cup of coffee at the table. He stood when Lane walked in, and she waved him back to his chair.
“Good morning, Roy. What are you guys going to do today?”
“I have some leads I need to follow up on. Jamie can hang with me while I check a couple of things out.”
Ben looked at Tanner. “Can I talk to you in the office for a couple of minutes?”
Tanner stood and followed Ben into the office and closed the door.
Lane sat at the table with Jamie. “Jess just called me. She’s bringing Gabe Greer home with her today.”
Jamie looked at his mother. “The Gabe Greer? He’s coming here for Thanksgiving?”
Lane smiled. It seemed the whole family was going to have to get used to Jess’s new found star status and her widening circle of famous friends. “That’s what she said when she called a couple of minutes ago.”
“WOW. She really is famous now, isn’t she?”
“So it seems. Guess it’s something we’ll need to get used to.”
“Do you think he’ll help us at Sunset House tomorrow?”
Lane tilted her head and smiled. “That’s a good question. I’d better call Kay and see if it would be a problem.”
Ben and Tanner came back into the kitchen. Ben had stopped at the coat closet and carried Lane’s barn coat over his arm. It had turned a little chilly, and while he didn’t think he needed a coat, he was sure his wife and baby needed one to keep them warm.
Lane smiled. Ben had no idea that the baby was like her own personal little Dutch oven. She stood and kissed him on the cheek before following him to the SUV. She’d been married twice before and sometimes she felt like she’d hit the jackpot this time.
Her first husband had been in a rock band and he’d been unfaithful with every groupie who made eyes at him. After eight years of marriage, her second husband had confessed that he was gay and was leaving her for the love of his life, Ralphie, the man he’d met a year before. Ben was twelve years younger than she was, had movie star good looks, and Kennedy charisma, and he’d still chosen her. He was the most considerate man she’d ever known and he loved her. Tears welled up in her eyes and started to spill over.
Ben had just backed out of the driveway as he looked over at her. He reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “What’s wrong?”
She wiped at her eyes. “I was just thinking about how lucky I am.”
Ben squeezed her hand again and then brought it to his lips. “I’m the winner in this relationship, Red. I have to pinch myself every morning to make sure I’m not dreaming. I love you.”
She smiled. “And, I love you.”
Ben reached over and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “I was thinking Le Peep for breakfast. Are you okay with that?”
“Le Peep’s perfect. I could go for a breakfast skillet. By the way, Jess called while you were talking to Tanner. She’s bringing Gabe Greer home with her for Thanksgiving. He wants to rent a car, so I don’t need to pick her up.”
“Gabe Greer, huh?” Ben thought his two youngest brothers, identical twins Joey and Pauli both of whom seemed to have a crush on Jess were about to have a little more competition for her attention than either of them was ready for.
She laughed. “If the guest list grows much more, we’ll have to have Thanksgiving at Papa’s.”
“Red, you know we’ll figure it out. Have you heard from Meg with a response for the Kellys?”
“She texted last night saying they’d be here. Meg’s mother likes to bake, so they offered to bring pies. One less thing for us to do.”
