The Secret Child

“We haven‘t gone to trial. We only arbitrated today,” he told her. “I didn‘t ask you here to talk law, Marni. How have you been?”

The smile disappeared, and Cole could almost see the protective barrier she drew around herself again. “Fine. I‘ve got a good job, a nice little house by the beach. I couldn‘t be happier.”

That wasn‘t what he wanted to know. “Married?”

“No.” She answered too quickly, as if the subject was off limits. Cole let it drop, for the time being.

He brought the conversation back to business. When she talked about her work, she didn‘t seem so damned nervous. “You been with the D.A.‘s office long?”

“Six years.” She lifted the glass of beer to her mouth.

Cole watched with interest as her lips settled on the rim. The first stirring of desire pulsed through him, settling in his belly. He attempted to douse the provocative thoughts with another shot of beer and failed.

Marni regarded Cole carefully. He‘d acquired a polished veneer over the years. Even from across the table he looked powerful. And the man had a definite monopoly on virility, whether he realized it or not. Cole was pure male, and he affected her more than she cared to admit.

An uncomfortable silence stretched between them, and Marni didn‘t know how to break it. She was a successful lawyer, fast on her feet and able to shift tactics without missing a beat. Speaking to juries and judges nearly every day, she‘d rarely been at a loss for words, but she stared mutely as Cole lifted his beer bottle to his lips. She averted her eyes and concentrated on the beer label, willing the memories of Cole to go away. Absently she fingered the label and began to peel it off the amber bottle.

“How‘s your mother?” he asked her.

She sighed. “We–I lost my mother a few years ago.”

Cole caught her slip and could only wonder about it. Who was us? She‘d said she wasn‘t married. Could it be an ex-husband?

“What about your family?” she returned politely.

Cole shrugged. “My sister married Don Turner and claims to be miserable because he works all the time. Daily shopping consoles her. She has two great kids, though.”

A small smile touched her lips. “Janelle has kids?”

“I know. Janelle hated kids until she had her own. Two adorable little girls.”

“And your parents?”

Cole noticed the barely laced sarcasm in her voice. “Mom and Dad will never change. Dad‘s talking about retirement now, and Mom complains about the lack of male grandchildren to carry on the Ballinger name.” He saw an odd light flicker briefly in Marni‘s eyes before she glanced at her watch, and he wondered if she had a date. A surge of jealousy he didn‘t understand vibrated through him. He spoke without thinking. “I‘ve missed you, Marni.”

“How‘s your wife, Cole?” Her voice was hard, cold.

He creased his brow in surprise. “How did you know about Elizabeth?”

The hardness in her voice was reflected in her eyes. “Your father told me. I wasn‘t gone more than two months before you were on your honeymoon.”

His irritation returned at her accusatory tone. “Hey, you dumped me, remember? Besides, Elizabeth was a mistake.”

Her short bark of laughter held no humor. “Was it?”

“Marni, it‘s a long story–”

“And I‘m sorry, but I don‘t have time to listen to it now. I have to be somewhere.” The coldness of her voice clawed at his heart with icy fingers.

Marni attempted to slide from the booth, but Cole reached out to stop her. His hand settled over hers. Her soft, smooth skin evoked memories of the night they‘d made love by the lake. Candlelight from the glass globe on the table flickered, and for a moment Cole thought of Marni‘s skin shimmering in the moonlit night. His eyes held hers. “Don‘t go, Marni.”

“I have to.” She spoke calmly, without emotion, but the heat burning in her eyes told him she was just as affected as he was by the simple touch.

“Elizabeth tricked me into marriage,” he said, unsure why he felt compelled to explain. He owed her nothing. “She said she was pregnant and then conveniently ‘lost’ the baby a few weeks after the wedding.”

“Elizabeth was pregnant?” Her voice was a choked whisper. “You slept with her while we were together?”

Cole watched as the blood drained from her face. Pain, fierce and tangible, flared in her gaze. A heaviness settled in his chest when she looked away.

“No,” he said. “Not then.” Guilt he didn‘t understand washed over him. He‘d gotten drunk in an attempt to drown his anger when Marni had broken up with him with no explanation. “Why did you give me the brush-off?” he asked, turning the tables.

“How is Elizabeth?” she countered.

Cole didn‘t miss the censure in her voice, or the fact that once again she‘d evaded his question. “Elizabeth and I divorced more than ten years ago. Last I heard, she was living in Europe.”

She lifted her gaze to his, anguish evident in her deep brown eyes. He wished he was privy to her thoughts. God only knew what went on in Marni Rodgers‘s mind.

“I have to go,” she said hastily. “I have an early day in court tomorrow.”

“How about dinner? You need to eat.” Cole was reluctant to let her get away from him. He told himself it was because he wanted the past resolved, not because he wanted to delay her departure.

“I‘m not hungry,” she said. She truly doubted she‘d be able to eat a thing after the blow Cole had just dealt her. He‘d married Elizabeth because she said she was pregnant. Marni ached with the same inner pain she‘d experienced when she‘d first learned he‘d married Elizabeth. When had Cole made love to Elizabeth? How long had she been in California before he turned to someone else? A week? Ten days? Not much longer if he‘d married Elizabeth within two months of her departure from Kansas.

“Come on, Marni. I haven‘t seen you in nearly thirteen years and you can‘t even spare a few hours to have dinner with me?” His voice was soft and coaxing. Reaching across the table, he covered her small hand with his large one.

Marni pulled her hand free. “It won‘t work, Cole.”

“I‘m not asking you for a lifetime, Marni. Only dinner.”

“I can‘t,” she said firmly. Why couldn‘t he just leave her alone?

He threw up his hands. “Okay, okay, don‘t get upset.”

Marni‘s sigh of relief was short-lived.

“I‘d like to see you again.” He spoke with a huskiness that unnerved her.

“Dammit, Cole,” she snapped in irritation. “I can‘t see you. It‘s out of the question.”

“Why?”

Marni looked at his face. His gentle eyes belied the demand of his tone. “Can‘t you just accept it? I don‘t want to see you.” Her voice shook with emotion. “I thought we had this conversation thirteen years ago.”

“We did, but you‘re still lying,” he stated matter-of-factly.

With a confidence she didn‘t feel, she rejected his words as nonsense. She was over Cole. He meant nothing to her any longer.

Liar! her inner voice shouted.