Bravo Unwrapped (23 page)

And then she did the one thing she never, ever let herself do.

Bitsy Janine Carlyle broke down and cried.

T
he next day, Saturday, bright and early, B.J. headed for the Castle.

She found her father and Jessica enjoying breakfast in bed. Jessica gasped when B.J. banged back the massive, heavily carved bedroom door. “Pardon me. I told Roderick you wouldn't mind if I just busted right in here.”

“What the hell?” L.T. threw down his spoon. It clattered against his tray as he grabbed a napkin and mopped up the dribble of yolk on his chin.

“I have news.” B.J. crossed the threshold and marched to the foot of the huge mahogany bed.

The ever-thoughtful Jessica picked up her tray and started to slide from the bed. “I'll just—”

“Stay right where you are, Jessica,” B.J. commanded. “This won't take a minute.”

Her father huffed. “This is beyond it. Have you lost your mind?”

B.J. folded her arms over her chest and considered. “Hmm. It's an interesting question….”

“Get out.”

“I will. Shortly.”

“What is wrong with you? Can't you even let a sick man enjoy his breakfast in peace? I didn't raise you to—”

“I quit,” she said pleasantly.

“Huh?” said her father. It was a dazzling moment. L.T. Carlyle, speechless at last.

“I said, I quit. I'm leaving
Alpha.
”

“What? You can't—”

“Oh, yeah. I can. And I am. I'm quitting
Alpha.
I'll be glad to stay on for a couple of weeks if you need me. But the truth is, it's time I rearranged my priorities. I'll need a job with a little more flexibility. And since you've set me up with such a nice, fat trust fund, I can take as long as I like to find just the right place for me.”

“Flexibility? All of a sudden you're talking flexibility?”

“That's right. I can't drive myself until I drop anymore. I have someone else to consider.”

Her father snorted. “Who? Buck? Buck can't deal with you having a damn job?”

Buck.
Just the mention of his name caused a tightness in her chest. She pressed her lips together and shook her head. “No. Not Buck.”

“Well who, then?”

“My baby.”

Her father sucked air like a landed fish. “Your…what?”

“You heard me.”

He blinked. “No.”

“Yeah.”

L.T. slumped back against the pillows. “A baby?

You,
B.J.? You're having a baby?”

“Isn't that what I just said?”

Her father's face flushed flaming red. B.J. thought,
This is it. It's happening. He's having another heart attack. Any second now, he'll be grabbing his chest and groaning in agony….

L.T. shook his head as if to clear it. He snorted. “I don't believe it…” He snorted some more. But he didn't groan. He didn't clutch his chest or start to turn blue. He only went on blustering in the usual way. “What the hell are you gaping at?”

“Uh, nothing.” Amazing. Wonderful. The dreaded second heart attack was simply not happening. He was fine.
Fine.
The sweetest sensation of relief flowed through her. “Whether you believe it or not, it's true. I'm pregnant. I'm keeping my baby. And I quit.”

Jessica spoke—softly, as usual. “Congratulations, B.J.”

“Thank you, Jessica.” B.J. nodded at L.T. “See you later, Dad.” And she got the heck out of there.

 

She went straight from the Castle to the office.

After finally facing down her father, she was ready to deal with Buck's cover story. In the empty, silent break room, she made herself a cup of herb tea.

She'd always liked working Saturdays, liked the silence of the deserted hallways, liked how much she could accomplish without the usual weekday interruptions. And then there was the bustle and excitement, the day-to-day challenges of the regular workweek. She'd adored all that, too.

B.J. smiled to herself as she sipped her tea. Yeah. She'd liked this job. A lot. She was going to miss
Alpha.

But there were other jobs. Monday, she'd start making calls. She had connections and she was damn good at what she did and everyone in New York publishing knew it.

Her smile widened as it occurred to her that
TopMale
would soon be needing a new features editor.

In her office, she booted her computer. Her silly hand was shaking as she checked her e-mail and found the one from Buck.

Two attachments: a scan and a document.

She opened the scan first and found an old black-and-white photo of the cabin at the Red Robin. A very young woman and a man ten or fifteen years older stood in the foreground, the cabin B.J. remembered so well behind them.

The woman was Chastity, when she was barely more than a girl, smiling shyly at the camera. The man beside her had his head turned toward her, so B.J. couldn't really make out his features. But she knew who he was: the notorious Blake Bravo.

Who else could it be?

She moved the picture to the side of the screen and read Buck's e-mail note.

 

Here's the story. I've been working it over, trying to get it right. I think it's fine now—or I hope it is.

Got the photo from Ma. Thought you'd get a kick out of it.

As you can see, dear old Dad did visit the Red Robin, after all. It was a month or two after they married. Ma told me Uncle Clovis took the picture.
Ma and Blake stayed on at the mine after Uncle Clovis went on down the mountain. Ma says I was conceived there, in the cabin. She says it was one of their most beautiful times together.

Just like you and me, Bits. Pretty crazy, huh?

 

Bits…

B.J. reached up and touched the word on the screen—and it hit her like a physical blow, tightening her stomach, bringing out a grunt of pain.

He would probably never call her that again…

Her hand a little clammy on the mouse, she closed up the scan and opened the document. She couldn't help fearing that she just might be in for man-eater revisited, though she knew that Buck wouldn't—
couldn't
—be that cruel.

She read quickly.

Halfway through, all her stupid, small-minded fears vanished. It was beautiful. Perfect. And truly Buck's story: where he came from, the boy he'd been, and the man he had become. He'd left her out of it, completely—or at least, he'd left out B.J.

There were, however, mentions of a tender reunion in a miner's shack with a long-lost love named Bitsy.

Who would ever know?

More important, B.J. realized, as she picked up her cooling tea and drank the rest, she didn't care if they did know.

Now, if she only had the guts to go to Buck, to beg him to take a chance on her just one more time…

 

B.J. spent Thanksgiving with her father and Jessica.

L.T. gave her the silent treatment. Fine. Two could play that game. And she had Jessica to talk to. The big
eyed blonde was all atwitter at the news that a baby was on the way. She asked when the baby was due and if B.J. had seen a doctor yet.

Yes, B.J. said, she'd seen a doctor Monday. She was due in June.

L.T. sat at the head of the table and glowered through the meal. Every once in a while, Jessica would reach over and tenderly pat his hand. B.J. mused that there had been a time—a time not all that long ago—when her father's furious silences would have cut her to the bone.

She would always pretend he couldn't affect her, insisting to him, and to herself, that he couldn't push her around. It was a good front she put up, so good she'd almost had herself convinced it was real. But deep inside, she would be terrified of losing his love and approval.

And she would always, somehow, end up doing exactly what L.T. told her to do.

Not anymore.

She hoped someday that the rift between them would heal. She would do her best to make that happen—but never again would she appease L.T. at the expense of her true self.

If only Buck could see her now.

If only she had the nerve to go to him…

 

The day after Thanksgiving, she did the Avenue. She took her time about it, ambling along, admiring each and every one of the gorgeously decorated Christmas windows.

Starting at her apartment, between Ninth and Tenth streets, she went first to Macy's on Herald Square, then detoured back to Fifth. From Lord & Taylor, she
headed up the Avenue to Saks, where the line went around the block just to view the displays. She got in line and she waited her turn.

After Saks, she bought a bag of roasted chestnuts from a street vendor and made a special stop at Rockefeller Center to admire the giant tree. It wasn't lit yet, but it was up and it was beautiful.

The stroll took hours. She savored every step. Her city did Christmas like no other city in the world.

 

Her final day at
Alpha,
Arnie threw a surprise going-away party for her, right there in the office. He hired a top caterer and he had the big table taken out of the main conference room, had a piano rolled in there, complete with piano player.

Bob, the new editor-in-chief, gave a speech about how much he hated to see her go. Giles, who was stepping into her job starting Monday, sang a Billy Joel medley in her honor. After a rousing chorus of “Only the Good Die Young,” he dropped to his knees in front of her and begged her not to leave.

B.J. grinned and said she had to go—and then she reached down a hand to him. Everyone applauded as Giles jumped up, grabbed his former boss, and danced her around the piano.

She was gathering up the last of her things from her office, when Arnie came in to say a private goodbye.

“Great party, Arnie. Thanks.”

“You've got a job here any time you want it,” he said, and she knew that he meant it—and not only because the day would come when she would own the place.

The office closed early and B.J. headed home to her apartment.

When she got there, she had a surprise waiting for her in the lobby.

“B.J.! Finally. I thought you'd never come.”

B.J. barely had time to put down the box of stuff from her desk and open her arms before Glory flung herself into them.

Their rounded stomachs bumped. They jerked apart, laughed, and then grabbed each other close again.

“You okay?” B.J. whispered in Glory's ear.

“Same ol', same ol'. My family won't get off me to say yes to Bowie. Bowie's been trying not to be such a big butthole as before, but… Oh, Beej, I just had to get away, you know?”

“It's okay.” B.J. hugged her tighter. “I'm glad you're here.”

Glory pulled back a little. Her huge dark eyes were moist with tears. “You think you could put me up for a few days?”

“You've got a place here for as long as you want one.”

“You mean it?”

“You bet.”

 

They stayed up late that night. They had a lot of catching up to do.

Glory reported that Chastity and Alyosha were together constantly.

“He's always out of there early in the morning, way before the sun comes up, but I know he stays the night sometimes. They are so gone on each other. It's really cute. And you should see Chastity. I'm not kidding. She looks twenty years younger. She sings now, around the Sierra Star, just crooning away while she mixes up her muffins. She's not what I'd call a great singer, you know? But she sure gives it a lot of feeling.”

B.J. chuckled. “I'm glad for her—for both of them.”

“Yeah. Yeah, me too…”

Glory asked about Buck.

B.J. told her everything.

And Glory told B.J. what she already knew.

“You have to go after him. You have to tell him that you've finally stood up to that father of yours. That you love him and you want to be with him. That you're
ready
to be with him. B.J., I think that's all he's waiting for. Up till now, he's had to do all the chasing. It's time you showed him you know how to go out and get your man.”

“Maybe…”

“What's that,
maybe?
No
maybe
about it. Go get 'im, and you'll see.”

“I don't know…” B.J. told her what had happened six years ago. She admitted, “I guess, well, I'm pretty terrified that I'll find him in bed with someone else. And worse than that, I'm scared it's just simply…too late. That when he walked away from me two weeks ago, it was finally for good.”

Glory said what she'd said more than once before. “You're nuts. Buck is crazy for you. And he's too smart to make the same mistake twice. There'll be no other woman in his bed. I guarantee it. If you go after him, he'll be there. Ready and waiting for you and only you.”

B.J. still doubted that Buck would take her back. But she did know she was going to have to go find out for sure.

Soon…

 

By the next morning, at the breakfast table, Glory was having second thoughts about her own situation.

“I didn't sleep at all,” she said. “I'm kind of seeing that maybe I shouldn't have run off like that. I guess I'd better make some calls…”

B.J. handed her the phone. Glory called Bowie first. He didn't answer, so she tried the Sierra Star. Chastity told her that Bowie was frantic—the whole town was worried. Bowie was out looking for her.

“Tell him I'm fine,” Glory said. “And yes…I know. Running away doesn't solve anything… Yeah. Okay. I'll be home as soon as I can get a flight. Call my mom for me?…. Oh, Mrs. B., you are the best…” She paused to grin at B.J. “B.J. says hi… Uh-huh. I'll tell her. Bye.” Glory hung up. “Mrs. B. says hi—and I need to get myself a flight home.”

“Consider it handled.” B.J. called Jessica, who said she'd make all the arrangements. The jet would be ready at Teterboro within the hour. Once that was taken care of, B.J. called Glory a cab.

When Glory's ride arrived, B.J. went down to the street with her to say goodbye. A light snow was falling. It gleamed in Glory's dark hair and dusted her shoulders as B.J. gave her one last hug.