The Mighty Quinns: Jack (11 page)

Once the fabric was parted, Mia slipped her hands beneath his shirt and ran her palms over his chest. Jack’s heart slammed in a rapid rhythm. He’d always been so cool and composed when it came to seducing women, but with Mia, he’d lost all sense of control.

Her lips found the warm pulse beneath his ear. Jack wanted to tell her then, to whisper the words, to make his feelings for her clear. He drew a breath and then another, but he knew what saying the words might cost him. Mia didn’t believe that what they shared was anything more than just passion. But Jack knew it ran deeper.

For now, the feelings would have to remain his own.

6

M
ONDAY
MORNING
BROUGHT
rain and fog. Mia woke to the sound of the hiss of raindrops outside her bedroom window. She reached out to grab her alarm clock, but when Jack felt her move, he hugged her body closer to his, pulling her backside into his lap and pressing a kiss to her shoulder.

“What time is it?” he mumbled.

Mia squinted to make out the alarm clock through her sleepy eyes. “I think it’s eight-thirty.” She flopped back down on the pillow.

“Just give me an hour. Two tops. That’s all I need.”

They’d stayed up late last night, talking and making love, then talking a little more. It was wonderful to have the freedom to spend the entire night together. And it was even more incredible to have a man in her bed.

Mia smiled to herself. Though she’d set out to have a no-strings affair, she knew they were already completely tangled up in each other’s lives. He’d be going back to Chicago before the end of the week and by that time, Mia knew there would be no easy way to say goodbye.

Though long-distance relationships were difficult, Jack had mentioned a job offer in L.A., which would at least put him on the West Coast. It was a start, a way that they could see if this short-term arrangement might thrive in the long run.

Mia rolled over and faced him. His hair was mussed and his faced shadowed by the scruff of a beard. Reaching out, she smoothed her hand over his cheek and Jack opened his eyes.

“Don’t start anything with me,” he warned. “I need more sleep.”

“I’m not starting anything,” she said. “What do you eat for breakfast?”

“Coffee,” he said. “And whatever fast-food breakfast sandwich I can put my hands on. I also require a newspaper with the box scores from yesterday’s games. The Cubs played last night.”

“There’s a newspaper on the porch downstairs,” Mia said. “Of course, you’ll have to get to it before my downstairs neighbor steals it. And I have coffee. We’ll need to go out for the rest, though.”

“Do we have to get up now? Can’t we stay in bed a little longer?”

“You’ll have to get the paper now,” she said. “The rest can wait.”

Groaning, Jack rolled out of bed. “Do I need to put on clothes to grab the paper?”

Mia giggled. “At least put on your underwear. That way, if you get locked out, you won’t get arrested for public nudity. Or propositioned by my neighbor, Mrs. Beauchamp. She adores younger men. In fact, she actually used to
be
a younger man.”

“I love San Francisco,” Jack said. He searched around until he found his khakis, then tugged them on, leaving the top button undone. Mia listened to his footsteps on the stairs as he walked down the three flights to the street level. A few seconds later, the buzzer for the front door rang and she shook her head.

Tugging a T-shirt over her head, Mia scrambled out of bed and hurried to the open front door to buzz him back in. But a few moments later, Jack walked back into the apartment...followed by her father.

Mia gasped. “Daddy! What are you doing here?”

“I came to talk to you about last night,” Ben said. “I didn’t expect that you’d have company.”

She glanced over at Jack. From the way he was dressed—or not dressed—it was pretty clear what was going on between them. Should she go with the truth or would it be worth it to try to convince her father that he’d slept on the sofa?

“Yes,” she said. “Jack spent the night.”

“You know, why don’t I go out and get us all some coffee. I’ll just grab my shoes and a shirt and get out of your way.”

“I think that would be best,” Ben said, fixing a dismissive gaze in Jack’s direction.

Mia held her breath as Jack hurried to the bedroom. A few seconds later, he came out, carrying his shoes and a shirt. He smiled at her as he slipped out the door and Mia drew another breath.

“What the hell are you doing, Mia? Are you sleeping with him?”

“Yes,” she said. “But it’s nothing serious. We’re not going to get married any time soon.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

“I’m sorry, Daddy, but I’m an adult now and I can make these decisions for myself. So, if you’ve come here to lecture me on the sad state of my morals, you can turn around and go home. I’m not interested in listening.”

“That’s not why I came,” Ben said. “I wanted to talk to you about last night. You seemed upset when you left.”

Mia stared at him for a long moment. “You think? Daddy, you announced your engagement in front of a hundred strangers, to a woman you’ve known three days. Don’t you think you could have at least clued me in a little bit before you popped the big question?”

“I wasn’t sure I was going to do it any earlier,” Ben said.

Mia sat down on the sofa and patted the place beside her. Ben ignored the invitation and began to pace on the other side of the coffee table. “This is not going to change anything between you and me.”

“But it’s going to change everything, Daddy. You’re moving on. But your three daughters can’t. I just can’t see you with anyone but Mom. It’s only been three years.”

“Three years seems like an eternity. Believe me, Mimi, I never thought I’d find someone who’d be interested in spending her life with me. But I did. And I hope to God I don’t lose her the way I lost your mother.”

“It feels like a betrayal to me,” Mia said.

“Oh, honey, no.” Ben shook his head. “Your mother and I had many discussions about this, the year before she died. She convinced me that I needed to move on if she ever left me. And for three years I tried, I really did. Then Elyse appeared and I thought, here’s a woman who might be exactly what I’m looking for.”

“Where are you going to live?”

“I don’t know yet. Elyse and I haven’t discussed it. Probably California, but I’m sure we’ll spend a few months a year in Chicago to be close to her family.”

“You seem to have all the answers, Daddy,” Mia said, slowly standing.

Ben reached out and grasped her shoulders. “Mia, I need you and your sisters to understand. This woman can make me happy. And I can make her happy, too. She isn’t my one and only. That was your mother. And for Elyse, it was her husband. But together, we make a pretty good pair and I want to make sure she’s in my life for however long that lasts.”

Mia drew a deep breath. It wasn’t her decision to make, nor was it her sisters’. Though she’d worried over her father for the past three years, it was time for both of them to move forward. He’d get a new wife and she’d get...she’d get her life back.

“I understand,” she said.

Her father pulled her into a fierce hug, then stepped back and looked down into her eyes. “Thank you, Mimi. You don’t know how happy you’ve made me.” He rubbed his hands together. “I have to go. Elyse is waiting back at the house. We’re going to drive up the coast and look at a few venues for the wedding. It’s going to be very small. Just close family and a few friends.”

Mia pasted a smile on her face. Though she could accept Elyse’s presence in her life, she was not going to comment on her wedding plans. “I’m sure it will be lovely.”

Ben kissed her cheek and walked to the door. He paused, then turned around. “I don’t like this thing with Jack,” he said. “But we’ll talk about that another time.”

He closed the door behind him and Mia lowered herself onto the sofa, then covered her eyes with her hands. This was all too much to take in, especially on about three hours of sleep. Mia wandered back into the bedroom and tugged the T-shirt over her head.

Crawling back under the covers, she found the sheets still warm. Mia pulled the covers up over her head and pinched her eyes closed. When she was little and she was confused by the world, an hour or two under the covers always helped. But now that she was older, she had other ways to cope.

She and Jack would figure this all out and find a way to make it work for both families. She could trust Jack to know what to do. He would make things better.

* * *

J
ACK
WASN
’
T
SURE
HOW
long he ought to give Mia and her father, but the last thing he wanted was to get in the middle of a family argument. Then again, since he was probably the cause of that argument, he should have stuck around to help her out.

“Coward,” he muttered.

Actually, he was afraid he might say or do something stupid. What could you say to a guy who capriciously threw marriage proposals around as if they were cheap confetti? Jack’s mother deserved more than some fickle suitor who’d probably change his mind once the going got tough.

Still, Jack couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for the guy. The man had lost the love of his life three years ago. How did someone ever deal with that? Maybe Ben was just desperate to find something as powerful and enduring as he’d had with Mia’s mother. And Jack’s mom just got caught in the cross fire.

Fifteen minutes had been long enough for Jack to grab three coffees from a nearby Starbucks and head back to Mia’s flat. But he didn’t want to interrupt a private discussion, so he decided to give them a half hour. He found a place on a park bench across the street and sipped at his coffee, watching the front door of Mia’s flat. After forty-five minutes, he gathered his resolve, walked across the street and rang her bell. If the argument wasn’t over yet, maybe he could offer a bit of help.

The door lock buzzed and he stepped inside and made the long trek up the three flights of stairs. She was waiting for him at the top, dressed in the same way he’d left her, in just an oversize T-shirt, her legs bare.

“Is he still here?” Jack whispered.

Mia shook her head and winced. “Dad only stayed a few minutes. He was pretty upset. It probably wasn’t the best way to start the day.”

“Oh, Mia, I’m sorry. I just opened the door to get the paper and there he was.”

She shrugged carelessly. “I don’t care. If he can spontaneously ask a woman to marry him after just three days, I can certainly sleep with that woman’s son if I want to. There’s really no difference. On a scale of recklessness, we’re both pushing the envelope.”

Jack frowned. That she tried to make an equivalency of their situations was a bit irrational. Even through the flip attitude, he could see Mia was upset. Was she upset enough to put Jack out of her life just to please her father?

Jack handed her a coffee and they walked back into the bedroom and sat down on the bed. Mia crossed her legs in front of her and braced her elbows on her knees, watching him as he kicked off his shoes.

“He’s always treated me like a child,” she explained. “My older sisters married young and Daddy was so happy that they found husbands who could look after them. It was as if he thought they were unable to survive on their own. He’s always wanted me to get married, and of course, he wants me to choose someone exactly like my two brothers-in-law. They’re both bankers. Oh, and boring. Unimaginative. Very uptight.”

“Not your type?” Jack asked.

“Not even close. I told him I want someone exciting. Someone who wants more than a house in the suburbs, a country club membership and a vacation in Cancun once a year.”

“Someone like me,” Jack said, sending her a grin.

“Yes! Exactly!” She looked at him and an instant later, she realized what she’d said. Jack watched as her cheeks turned pink with embarrassment. “Not that I expect you to marry me. We’ve only known each other three days.”

“Going on four,” he said. “But don’t panic—no one gets married after only four days.”

“Aren’t our parents supposed to be the ones with all the good sense? Four days and they’re driving up the coast to look at wedding venues. Just so you know, it’s going to be a small wedding, with just family and friends.”

“What?” Jack gasped, shaking his head.
“Really? It’s gone that far already?”

“Yes. They’re not only engaged, they’re planning on getting married right away.”

Jack sighed deeply, tipping his head back and closing his eyes. “I need to talk to her. This is not like my mother at all. She is always so careful about making decisions. And this is obviously a bad one.”

“You don’t think they’ll be happy?” Mia asked.

Jack cursed softly. The truth was, he’d hoped his mother would find happiness in a new marriage. But he’d always thought she’d find someone in Chicago, someone who’d be familiar to the family before any wedding plans were announced. Someone he could thoroughly investigate before any promises were made. He didn’t know anything about what Ben McMahon expected from a wife.

“My mother is very independent. She doesn’t really like anyone telling her what to do.”

“She sounds like me,” Mia said. “And you see how me and my father get on lately.”

Jack cursed again. “You know what? I’m tired of worrying about our parents. I think you should spend the day showing me San Francisco. I’ve never ridden one of those trolley cars. I’ve never been to Chinatown. We need to let them make their own mistakes.”

Mia reached out and grabbed his hand, pulling it to her chest. “All right,” she said. “Today, it’s just you and me. We’ll see the city and then maybe catch a movie this afternoon. Then we’ll hit Chinatown for dinner. We won’t even think about my dad and your mom. They’re certainly not thinking about us right now.”

“And tomorrow, I’m going to fly down to L.A. and talk to SportsNet about that job. I’d like you to come with me. They’re going to put me up in a swanky hotel and pay for all my expenses. We could have a nice time.” He wagged his eyebrows at her.

“I have a few clients I could see,” she hedged.

“Perfect. I’ll have the network make flight arrangements for two and we’ll leave tomorrow afternoon.”

He had barely thought of the job at SportsNet USA since he’d been approached a year ago. There had been no reason to make such a big change in his life. But with his mother remarrying, Jack suddenly had a chance to reboot his life and maybe find a way to include Mia in it. He was no longer tied to Chicago.

It wouldn’t hurt to live on the West Coast. Weekends together would be much easier. And maybe he could work out of San Francisco for part of the week. Jack crawled over the bed and settled in next to Mia. “We’re going to have to go back to your dad’s place to pick up the rest of my stuff.”