Foolish Games(52)

“Hey!” He shrugged her hand away. “No distracting the driver!”

An hour later, Julianne was white knuckled as she drove Will’s brand-new SUV along the main street through Chances Inlet. “Who knew there’d be traffic in this little town?” Getting behind the wheel of a car had seemed like a good idea after a latte and Brody’s relaxed encouragement. But now she wasn’t so sure.

“It’s Memorial Day weekend. This is the beach. I’d say everyone knew that but you,” Brody teased.

She licked her parched lips as she maneuvered the car past a cyclist. A few blocks later she turned onto the side street that led to the driveway, finally relaxing.

“You got this?” Brody asked.

“This is the easy part.” Julianne swerved to avoid nearly clipping a tree as she pulled up onto the parking pad.

Brody grabbed the dash as she jerked the car into park. “Yeah, well, I think you’re gonna need a few more lessons, Mario, before you go solo, but I’m proud of you for not wimping out. We’ll make a soccer mom out of you yet.”

Julianne leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks, Brody. You’re a prince among men.”

The smile he gave her wasn’t his forced cover-boy mug but a genuine grin. “Everything is going to work out, Julianne. You’ll see.”

Before she got the chance to ask him what he meant, his car door was yanked open and Will was dragging him out by his shirt collar.

“Will, stop it!” she yelled as she scrambled out of the car and raced to the other side. “What are you doing?” She grabbed onto the back of his shirt and pulled, but it was useless; both men were grappling to get a better hold of one another.

“Damn it, Connelly! Get your hands off me! I’m getting sick and tired of you going all caveman every time I’m around.” Brody kneed Will in the thigh and slipped out of his grip, causing Julianne to get tangled up in Will’s legs.

“And I’m getting sick and tired of you constantly having your hands on my wife!” Will charged after him again, but Julianne stepped in between them.

“I said stop it!” she yelled. Both men ignored her.

“Dude! If you were a little more sensitive to your wife’s needs, I wouldn’t have to step in so much!”

Julianne froze at Brody’s words. Did the man have a death wish? And what was he talking about?

Will’s voice was like a whip cutting through the air. “What’s that’s supposed to mean?”

“It means she doesn’t know how to drive a car, you idiot!” Brody shrugged at Julianne’s gasp. “My mistake, she does know how to drive. She just doesn’t like to. Sorry, Julianne, but he was bound to find out anyway, and I’m getting a little sick of fighting off his ugly mug in my face when I’ve done nothing wrong. I’m out of here.” He stalked off down the drive.

They stood in silence a moment and Julianne worked to regain her equilibrium. Will finally turned toward her, his face stony. “Storms, the ocean, and driving. Are there any more phobias you have that you want to share with me, Princess?”

She swore in Italian before storming around the car, pulling out the bags of groceries, and heading into the kitchen. Tears stung her eyes as she tossed the fresh vegetables on the counter. It was bad enough to live life as a quivering mass of phobias and insecurities, but somehow having Will know all her secrets made her feel totally exposed, raw. It was more than she could handle.

Will carried the remaining groceries in and began unpacking the bags. “It’s a fair question. You’ll be taking care of my son and I need to know what is going to . . . provoke you.”

Julianne turned from the fridge, tears falling freely down her face now. “Provoke me? Besides you, you mean? Should I just give you a list so you can declare me an unfit mother right now?”

His silence told her all she needed to know. As far as he was concerned, she was a flake. Too fragile to take a chance on. Every other man in her life felt the same way: old boyfriends, her brother, her father, even Nicky. Why should her fake husband be any different? Worse, this man could use her insecurities against her to take away her son.

“Well,” she choked out, “I believe that’s a complete catalog of my phobias, Will. I don’t think any of them are hereditary, if that’s what you’re worried about. He’d have to survive a car accident in a raging thunderstorm that tossed the car into the ocean in order to become as emotionally wrecked as I am. Since all of those things terrify me, Owen should be quite safe when he’s in my care.”

A sob racked her body as she tried to escape the kitchen, but Will was too fast for her.