Only One (Ward Sisters Book 2) (22 page)

Rick ran with him every morning, even on the mornings when Brian took the overnight shift. Jenna helped him shower for a couple days, slept next to him in the evenings, and even let him hold her close. She moved into the house for the short-term and she slept in his bed even after Amy and Anja started taking turns for the awards shows.

If anyone thought it strange, no one said a thing about it.

Meanwhile, she still hadn't heard from Liam. That first night, she understood how hard it might have been for him to call her, to even think much about her. After that, there wasn't an excuse.

Jenna was pissed.

When a week had passed, she started feeling sad about it. Rob spoke to Liam every day, but if her boyfriend asked how she was doing, her boss never said so. Even if he didn't know that she was sleeping next to Rob, Liam was aware of their daily calls.

Jenna was so distracted with everything in Rob's life that she didn't think too hard about her own. Until one day, when she went to take her pill, she realized that she should have already started a period because she was into her placebo week. Not once, even before the pill – not in all the time that she had been sleeping with Rob without using condoms – had she missed or been late.

She drove all the way back to L.A. and went to the pharmacy to buy a pregnancy test. Not wanting to leave it at Rob's house in case someone got the wrong idea, she performed the test at her apartment. As she sat on the side of her tub, waiting for the test to complete, she thought about that last night she'd been with Liam, when the condom had broken.

All those weeks of sleeping with Rob numerous times a day and never getting pregnant, but she had one condom break with Liam and voilà? The test was a formality. Jenna knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she was pregnant. When the test showed two lines to indicate she was right, all she could do was cry.

Emily better get her act in gear soon. Rob needed to recover and Liam's presence was required in L.A. There was no way she could tell Liam over the phone that he was going to be a father.

Chapter 16

Malibu, California, five months ago...

Jenna had moved back to her apartment right after she found out about the baby. She was afraid she'd be puking her guts out every morning and wasn't sure how she'd explain that to Rob.

With Liam in Maine covertly watching Emily, and the Deacons worried about Rob, Rick was with his brother all the time these days. He would've been in L.A. for the awards shows, anyway, but there was a lot of press and other stuff happening, and Rick usually went home for that. Jenna wasn't surprised to see him when she opened the door.

“Hi, Jen. What are you doing here? Rob doesn't have you on the schedule.”

Jenna smiled to herself. Rick knew Rob's schedule inside and out. She had always appreciated his meticulous attention to detail.

“Just thought I'd stop by and see how he's doing.”

“He could probably use a friend right now. I think he misses having Liam around to lean on.”

“How is Liam doing?”

“He's hanging in there. I'm sure it's pretty lonely. I asked Rob if we could rotate him out, but both he and Liam said no. You want me to go get Rob for you?”

“He's in his room?” Rick nodded. “I'll just go down there.” He gestured for her to go ahead.

She knocked lightly on the door. Rob said to come in and when she walked into the sitting room, he was lounging on the chaise in his boxers, reading a script. He sat up and smiled at her.

“Hey, gorgeous.”

She sat on the chaise beside him. “How are you doing?”

“Surviving. I've got therapy later. What about you? How are
you
doing? This is an unexpected visit. Is there some disaster on the horizon that you didn't want to break to me over the phone?”

Oh, if he only knew.

Jenna shook her head and reached for him. He didn't hesitate, he just pulled her into his arms for a hug. They held each other for a couple minutes, and Jenna felt heat build, being close to him, with her body pressed against his bare chest. She leaned back a little and gave him a small smile. He smiled in return.

She thought about their brief affair, how hot and steamy it had been. Suddenly, she wanted –
needed
– to feel something other than scared and lonely. A brief moment of lust passed between them, and she took that as a sign that he wanted it, too.

So she kissed him.

He kissed her back for a few moments, and then it was like he realized what he was doing, as if he'd been in a fog and then shook himself free. He pulled away abruptly.

“Jenna, what are you doing? That's never going to happen again and you know it. Just because Emily left, it doesn't mean I don't still love her. And I thought you loved Liam?” Jenna started to cry. Rob pulled her into his arms and rubbed her back. “Hey, what's wrong?”

She sniffed, took a deep breath – no point in sugarcoating it.

“I'm pregnant.”

“Are you sure?” She nodded. “What's going on? I know you weren't trying to get me to sleep with you so you can pass this off as my baby. You're not that kind of girl.”

“I needed to feel something other than terrified. I'm sorry.”

Rob looked concerned. “That first night, when I was really out of it, we didn't have sex without condoms again, did we?”

“No! We didn't. I swear. This isn't your baby. I'm sorry. I know you still love Emily. I guess this probably wasn't the best way to tell you that I'll need time off in seven months, huh?”

“Seven months? So you got pregnant in January.”

“Yeah.”

“Does that mean...”

“It doesn't mean anything.” She wasn't about to tell Rob before she told Liam. One secret between the two of them was more than enough for a lifetime.

“Okay. You know I'll be here for you. Whatever you need, tell me. Except sex. I'm not cheating on Emily.”

“Still hoping you'll find your way back together?”

“Every second of every day.”

“Why don't you call her?”

“She wants nothing to do with me. Said she didn't love me.”

“And you believed her?”

Rob looked down. “No,” he said quietly.

“Then put on your big boy undies and
call her
.”

He shook his head and sighed. “You planning to tell the baby's father he's going to be a parent?”

She got the point. The right thing to do wasn't always the easy thing. Jenna wondered if he'd guessed who the father was, given his reaction when she said she got pregnant in January.

“At some point, maybe.”

“He deserves to know, no matter who he is.”
But especially if it's Liam
, was the unspoken word of advice.

Jenna sighed. “I know.” Rob hugged her for a while. He was right. Liam deserved to know. But how could she tell him over the phone? And what if he didn't want her anymore?

**********

Los Angeles, California, one month ago...

When she still hadn't heard from Liam after a few months, Jenna became discouraged. Reggie saw him in New York in May and said that he was still in love with Jenna, which was hard to believe. Jenna had given him at least two very good reasons to contact her in the past, and he'd never bothered. What else was she supposed to do? The ball was in his court, and he wasn't playing.

Not anymore. Not with her.

One early August morning, she ran the algorithm for Emily and a hit popped up about an engagement between Emily and her ex, Josh Ricker. She looked at the photo and debated scrubbing it, since it could send Rob into a tailspin. But the photo looked...off. She hacked Emily's Facebook profile for signs that she'd gone back to her ex, and found a picture of Emily's sister that looked an awful lot like the girl in the engagement photo.

So she called the photographer – one of the few decent ones – and he told her that he'd
thought
it was Emily. When he'd realized it wasn't, his editor ran the story anyway. Jenna confirmed that it was Emily's sister in the photo.

The guy told her that since they'd confirmed it was the sister and the ex, his boss would want to run a betrayal piece. She asked him to give it a few days, and he promised to wait an extra day before they ran the story if she gave him an exclusive. Jenna refused to go on the record for anything, but hinted that he'd find the evidence illustrating it was Emily's sister if he looked. She thanked him for giving her the extra day to sort out the mess and then she called Rob.

“Hey gorgeous,” he said, a smile in his voice.

These days, he was so much better. It was such a relief.

“When do I get to see you so I can snuggle that belly?”

“Soon, honey. I promise.”

Rob desperately wanted kids, and she'd debated throwing all their history at him, saying that she'd lied about the night Emily left. He'd have married her. They'd have had a good life together and they did love each other.

But she couldn't do it. He still loved Emily as much as she loved Liam. Jenna had a sliver of hope that Liam would return to her and they'd be able to make a family together.

And this might be the break she needed.

“What's up? Do we have a problem in the wings?”

“Funny thing, that...” She told him about the blurb, photo and her discussion with the photographer. “He said it was secluded. I'd guess that they haven't told anyone about their engagement. Emily didn't say her sister was seeing her ex, did she?”

Jenna could hear the distress in his voice. “No, and Liam hasn't mentioned that either. What should I do?”

“Call her. See if she knows. Her sister's wedding is soon, right? I bet they'll announce the engagement then.”

“Shit. Yes. Tomorrow. And I know her, she won't take a date to the damn thing to spare that jackass' feelings. Let me call her and I'll call you back.” Jenna agreed. A few minutes later,
Sexy Back
played.

“Any luck?”

“She's not answering. I can't let her go through this alone.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Do me a favor, find out what flights are available and then book me the one that gets me out there fastest. Her sister is getting married in Bar Harbor. And I'll probably need a car. I'd ask Liam to come get me at the airport, but if we're this close to a media circus about to explode, he needs to stay with her.”

“What will you do about a guard? Brian heads back today for his wife's surgery, doesn't he? Kelly will kill Rick if he comes with you when they've been waiting for vacation all summer.”

“I'll worry about that. Just make the arrangements. And can you call Amy, too? I need to call Liam.”

“Okay. I'll talk to you soon.” She hung up and did as he asked.

Amy was thrilled that Rob was finally going after Emily. “You planning to finally tell Liam he's going to be a father?”

Jenna blushed. “How did you know?”

“Jen, I've known you for a long time. You've only slept with two people since things blew up with Chad, am I right? And Emily or no Emily, I know you love Robbie enough that you'd never keep the fact that you were having his baby from him. You two haven't been together for a while, have you?”

“Not since Lola, no. Next time he was back in L.A. after that was when he introduced me to Liam. Do you think Rob suspects this is Liam's baby?”

“He didn't say, but how can he not know? Has he told you he doesn't think so?”

“No, he doesn't say anything about the father. I was beginning to wonder if he'd given up completely on Emily and was about to make me an offer. He wants children very badly. If things had ever worked between us, surely we'd have kids by now.”

“Are you happy for him? That he might get a chance to beg her to take him back?”

“I'm trying to be. I know he loves her and I want him to be happy. But I'm a little pissed at her, to be honest. If she'd just heard his side of things, then maybe he wouldn't have struggled so much the last six months. And maybe I'd have been with Liam when I found out I was pregnant instead of waiting for him to call me from across the country. But it's not about me wanting Rob for myself. I'm hoping that I might finally have a chance to get Liam back, too.”

“Well, I'll keep my fingers crossed for all of you. Is he set with his travel arrangements?”

“He is. I printed everything for him. I'll meet him at the airport. I sent a car down to pick him up, but I'll call him now.” Amy agreed and hung up, telling her to wish him luck.

She called Rob, who agreed to meet her at the airport in two hours. She took a cab there, knowing he'd send her home in the limo. When the car pulled up to the curb, she climbed inside. The car drove away once she was seated. Rob moved next to her.

“Hey, gorgeous. I'm glad you met me here. I wanted to rub your belly for good luck.” He pulled up her shirt so he could rub her belly and kiss it.

Jenna smiled at him. Why couldn't she have fallen in love with him instead? Wouldn't their lives have been easier?

“Feel free. He always kicks when he hears your voice.”

Rob's expression turned solemn. He leaned in and kissed her, his hand on her face. “Are you sure this baby isn't mine, Jen? I know you said it wasn't before, but I was a mess then. If you were trying to spare me...” His voice caught.

“Shh. No, honey. The baby isn't yours. I'd never have kept that from you, even if you were a mess. We haven't been together since the morning you left for the
Shattered Glass
shoot.”

“Okay, because I had a flash of kissing you in the shower...”

“You did. I stopped you.”

“Are you sure...”

She put her fingers over lips. “I'm positive. Now go. You've got a princess to rescue. Go be her knight and win her heart back.”

He smiled and it nearly broke her. “Thanks for everything, Jen. You know I love you, right?”

“I do, Rob. I love you, too. Call me as soon as you can and let me know how it goes, okay?” She kissed him sweetly. “Good luck.” He squeezed her hand and he got out of the car. He waved as he ran toward the airport entrance, and then he was gone.

She sank into the seat as the car pulled away from the curb. Fat tears rolled down her cheeks. Why did she have to fall in love with his commitment-phobic best friend instead of him?

**********

Twenty-four hours later, Rick called. It was unusual, because he never called her. She talked to Amy daily, but ever since her affair with Rob after Lola, Rick had looked at her differently.

“What can I do for you, Rick?”

“They're back together.”

Jenna sighed in relief. “Finally. Thank God.”

“You sure you're happy about that?”

“Why wouldn't I be happy about it? He's been waiting for this for months.”

“Didn't know if maybe you were hoping he'd marry you.”