To Make a Marriage(30)

He moistened dry lips. 'Did she tell you what that complication was?'

Rome gave a humourless smile. 'As it happens, yes, she did. But she didn't need to. I already knew.'

Adam stared at him dazedly. Rome knew? But how-? The only person he had  ever told about Glenda had been Barbara, and he couldn't believe-                       
       
           



       

Rome softly broke into his racing thoughts. 'Adam, when you came to me  twenty years ago with your business proposal, I was a man of  thirty-four, with a wife and very young family; I took risks, but I  wasn't stupid. I had your background thoroughly checked out before I  agreed to finance you.'

Adam could only stare at the other man. Rome really did know! All this time he had known-and never said anything!

Rome gave an impatient sigh, moving over to the drinks tray to pour them  both a glass of brandy, handing Adam one of those glasses before  sipping at his own.

'What are you so afraid of, Adam?' Rome looked at him over the rim of his glass.

Losing Andie! He was so close, so close to having her for all time, and the thought of losing her now-!

Rome briefly closed his eyes. 'Do you have so little faith in Andie that  you think she won't want to marry you once she knows about your past?'

Adam swallowed hard, dropping down heavily into a chair. 'You don't  understand,' he groaned. 'Andie doesn't love me. And once she knows-'

'Andie doesn't love you!' Rome repeated with incredulous disbelief. 'Are  you stupid, Adam? Or just blind? Andie has worshipped the ground you  walked on since she was seven years old!'

Adam took a gulp of the brandy. 'You're wrong. She-'

'Take my word for it, Adam,' the older man broke in. 'Andie loves you. She always has.'

Adam looked across at him. Could Rome possibly be right? Did Andie care for him?

No! He couldn't believe that. He didn't dare take the risk of believing that.

'Adam, this morning I told Andie that if she had any doubts, if she had  changed her mind about marrying you, that it was all right with me,'  Rome told him gruffly. 'That I would stand by whatever decision she  made.'

Adam's breath caught and held in his throat. 'And?' he finally gasped weakly.

Rome smiled. 'She told me that if she didn't marry you she would never marry anyone-'

'That's because of the babies-'

'No, it isn't, damn it!' Rome rasped harshly, blue eyes blazing. 'Adam, I  know how difficult it's been for you,' he continued more gently. 'But  you aren't responsible for your past. You were a child-'

Adam's eyes clouded. 'Don't you see? My past makes me the man I am!'

Rome sighed. 'I accept that, unlike my own children, you were brought up  in a world that didn't have any affection, let alone love. I can even  understand how it must be difficult for you now to accept having someone  love you. But the Summer family have always loved you. And Andie more  than all of us.'

Was Rome right? Was he just unable to believe that anyone could love him?

Could Andie ever love him … ? Was Rome right, and she already did love him?

He thought back over the last couple of weeks, their initial awkwardness together, and the closeness they had known last night …

He looked across at Rome, only to find the other man looking right back  at him, his gaze steadily challenging. 'What else did Andie say to you  this morning?'

The other man hesitated. 'As you might suppose, she asked me if I knew anything about a woman called Glenda Howarth.'

Adam tensed. 'And?'

'I had to answer her honestly and say no,' Rome came back easily.

'But-'

'Adam, I would never lie to Andie,' Rome assured him. 'I have never lied  to any of my children, and I'm not about to start now. The truth is I  don't know anything about Glenda Howarth. Glenda Munroe is another  matter, however. But that isn't what Andie asked me.'

Glenda Munroe …

Yes, that had once been her name. The same surname as his. Before she'd remarried.

'I also happen to believe, Adam,' Rome said, 'that it is for you to tell Andie about the past. About Glenda.'

It was. He knew it was.

He was just so terrified of losing Andie when he had done so, of her pity, if not her disgust.

Despite Rome's assurances that Andie loved him …





CHAPTER THIRTEEN




ANDIE watched Adam as he walked restlessly up and down her sitting-room.

He looked terrible, his face pale, a grimness about his eyes and mouth that she had never seen there before.

She had no idea why. Last night, sleeping in each other's arms, had been  wonderful. As had sitting drinking coffee together this morning before  he'd left.

But Adam had telephoned her late this afternoon and suggested he come  over to her apartment this evening, turning down her offer to cook them  both dinner. Andie had an idea why that was now; Adam didn't look as if  he would be staying long enough to eat dinner!                       
       
           



       

Finally she could stand the silence no longer. 'Adam-'

'Andie, I have something to tell you,' he burst out. 'It isn't something  I'm going to enjoy telling you, but I know it has to be done.'

Glenda Howarth … ?

Surely it had to be something to do with the other woman; Adam had  changed since that meeting with Glenda Howarth outside his office  yesterday.

Andie had been to see her father this morning, in the hope that he might  be able to shed some light on the other woman's role in Adam's life;  after all, the men had been close friends for years. But Rome had been  less than helpful, his expression completely blank at the mention of the  other woman's name. Although he had promised to see what he could find  out about her.

But from the expression on Adam's face, Rome wouldn't need to bother; Adam was going to tell her about the other woman himself.

She moistened suddenly dry lips. Adam looked so unhappy about all this that she just knew it was going to be awful.

But what on earth could be so terrible about his relationship with  Glenda Howarth that it made him look like this? Andie had given a lot of  thought to the other woman today-and the only thing she had been able  to come up with, the very worst scenario, was that Adam had once been  married to Glenda Howarth. After all, she knew little or nothing about  his life before twenty years ago.

But even so, such a young marriage, a marriage that must have gone  terribly wrong to have ended before Adam was even twenty, would have no  significance in his life now.

Not that Andie would like the idea of Adam ever having been married to  anyone else-and especially a woman like Glenda Howarth, a woman she had  disliked on sight!-but it wasn't so terrible that Adam had to be  reluctant to tell her about it. Was it … ?

Or perhaps she had it all wrong, and Adam wasn't going to tell her  something awful about Glenda Howarth, perhaps he was going to tell her  of his feelings for her mother. That, she most certainly did not want to  hear!

She stood up. 'Do I really need to hear this, Adam? Is it going to help anything?' she reasoned.

He gave a slightly bitter smile. 'Probably not,' he conceded. 'In fact,  I'm sure not. But Rome has convinced me it isn't something you should  learn about after we're married.'

'Rome has?' Her eyes widened. When had Adam spoken to her father about  this? Before or after her own visit this morning? How had Rome reacted  to being told that Adam had been in love with Barbara all these years?

Adam went on with his explanation. 'He doesn't believe it would be fair  to you not to tell you before we're married. And after thinking about  it, I know he's right,' he acknowledged.

Fair to her? Had it been fair to Rome, even if he were finding happiness  a second time in marrying Audrey, to burden him with the truth of  Adam's feelings towards Barbara?

'How did my father react?' she asked worriedly. After all, such  knowledge was sure to put a strain on Rome and Adam's friendship. That  was the last thing any of them needed just now!

Adam sighed. 'Apparently, he already knew.'

Well, she had guessed that much, her father was far from stupid. But  actually hearing the words must have made it seem so much worse.

Andie was puzzled. 'I don't know what you hoped to achieve by talking to  my father about this.' Any more than he expected to achieve anything  positive by telling her either! It might succeed in easing Adam's  conscience, but it certainly wouldn't do anything to help their own  marriage.

'I didn't hope to achieve anything,' Adam protested. 'I just needed  someone to talk to, and Rome was the only person I could think of. It  helped that he already knew.'

'I'm sure it did,' Andie snapped.

'He mentioned that you had been to see him this morning, too.' Adam looked at her searchingly.

'That was about something else completely,' she dismissed impatiently.

Adam frowned. 'I don't think so … '

Andie was becoming more and more confused the longer this conversation  continued along these abstract lines. 'Maybe if you just say what you  feel you have to say, Adam … ?' she prompted, anxious to get this over  with now, her nerves already strung out to breaking-point.