To Make a Marriage(5)

The silence that followed her departure was stilted to say the least,  Andie decided as she glanced across at Adam beneath long lashes.

He was dressed casually today, in a black silk shirt teamed with fitted  black denims, having thrown his silver-grey jacket into one of the  wicker chairs as he'd entered the sun-lounge a few minutes ago. He was  looking tall and lithe, his slightly overlong silver-blonde hair  brushing the collar of his shirt, a slender gold watch nestling in the  golden hair of his right wrist.                       
       
           



       

Adam looked exactly what he was, Andie realised: a highly successful businessman, and a very eligible bachelor!

His expression was guarded as he looked across at her. 'You decided to come down, after all,' he murmured distantly.

He was still angry, Andie realised. But by what right? Okay, so they had  all been a bit unthinking where Audrey's resignation was concerned, but  Adam had no idea of the circumstances of the last few weeks-and he  would remain in ignorance as far as she was concerned! He had no right  to judge what he didn't understand. Besides, she still stuck by her  position that it wasn't for any of them to stand in the way of what  Audrey had decided she wanted to do.

'Yes, as you can see,' she replied, sitting forward in her seat as she  prepared to stand up. 'You'll have to excuse me, I'm afraid; I was just  about to go over to the hothouse to check on Mummy's roses.'

Adam gave her a derisive glance. 'I'm sure they can continue to grow for  the next ten minutes or so without your checking on them! Long enough  for you to sit with me while I drink my coffee, at least.'

She drew in a sharp breath at his undoubted mockery. She and Adam seemed  to have been at odds with each other just recently-and she couldn't say  it was something she was very comfortable with.

'I'm sure they can,' she acknowledged softly as she remained seated. She  was feeling slightly vulnerable since her leave-taking of the magazine  yesterday, and certainly didn't feel up to another confrontation with  Adam. 'Did you know that it was Jonas presenting Danie with a bunch of  yellow roses, just like the ones Mummy loved to grow, that confirmed for  Danie that she was in love with him?' she continued conversationally.

'No.' Adam smiled as he stretched his long length in the chair opposite  hers. 'Although that sounds like the unpredictable Danie we all know and  love,' he went on affectionately. 'How do you feel about having a  doctor in the family?'

Her aversion to anyone in the medical profession, since going into  hospital at the age of five to have her tonsils out, had become a family  joke. And as Adam had been almost part of that family for the last  twenty years …

She retained her casual demeanour. 'He could come in useful, I suppose,' she answered flippantly.

Adam chuckled. 'I'm sure Jonas would be pleased to hear it!'

'He's an obstetrician, did you know?' Andie said.

'I think Rome did mention it.' Adam nodded. 'I wonder how on earth Danie ever met him?' he asked thoughtfully.

Andie knew exactly how her impulsively madcap sister had met the  gorgeous Jonas Noble. But that was something else that wasn't for public  knowledge. And in this particular case, Adam was definitely part of the  public …

'Rome is out on the estate somewhere,' she very firmly changed the subject. 'But he shouldn't be too much longer.'

'I'm not complaining,' Adam drawled, smiling warmly as Audrey returned with the promised cup and saucer.

'What man would complain about having coffee with two beautiful women?'

'One beautiful woman, I'm afraid,' Audrey announced.

'The post has just arrived, so I'll have to leave the two of you for a while,' she told them regretfully.

'Shall I pour, or would you like to be Mother?' Adam invited sardonically, once he and Andie were alone once more.

Andie gave him a sharp glance, her hands clenched tightly on the arms of  her chair as she felt her cheeks lose all their colour, breathing  shallowly in her shock.

Did Adam know? Had her father, despite her request for privacy, confided her condition to this man, his best friend?

Because she was going to be 'Mother'-in six months, she was going to have a baby!

The realisation of her pregnancy nine weeks ago had come as a tremendous  shock to her, one that she hadn't taken to too readily initially. After  all, without the baby's father in her life, it was something that she  would have to go through alone.

But four weeks ago there had been the scare that she could lose the  baby, and from feeling in the depths of despair, not knowing quite what  to do, she had suddenly realised how much she really wanted her child.  So much so that she wasn't willing to do anything that might jeopardise  the pregnancy going full-term. Which was why, on Jonas's advice, she had  taken a nine-month leave of absence from her high-powered,  time-demanding job …

Her family knew of her pregnancy, of course, as did Audrey, but they had  all been sworn to secrecy. Had her father now broken that promise and  confided in Adam … ?                       
       
           



       

Andie looked at him searchingly, seeing only lighthearted enquiry in his  expression as he didn't wait for her answer but poured the two cups of  coffee himself, and started sipping the strong, milky brew  unconcernedly.

No, he didn't know, Andie realised with a thankful sigh. There would be  plenty of time for that later, once her pregnancy began to show.

Strangely, she had lost weight at the beginning of her term, but Jonas  had assured her that was only because of the worry and strain she had  initially put herself under, because of her uncertainties, and that  eventually she would start to put that weight back on. If the tightness  of her clothing about her waist was anything to go by, that was starting  to happen now!

But not enough, she was relieved to realise, for Adam to be in the least  suspicious that his sardonic remark was actually fact! She was glad  about that; Adam was the very last person she wanted to know about her  pregnancy.

Because although she knew Adam had always been in love with her mother,  Andie-for her sins!-had always loved Adam. Oh, she had always known it  was a pointless love, that her feelings would never be returned, but she  couldn't help that, she loved Adam anyway. So his pity-or even worse,  his scorn!-concerning her pregnancy, were not things she felt able to  cope with on top of everything else …



Adam sipped the coffee without tasting it, his thoughts broodingly  introspective. He had been pleased on his arrival to see Andie had come  down this weekend after all-damn it, he was more than pleased! But it  had become glaringly obvious during the last few minutes that the strain  which he had sensed between them on Monday was still there. In fact, it  was worse!

Hell!

He drew in a ragged breath. 'How is Rome this weekend?' His coffee finished, he relaxed back in his chair.

Andie grimaced. 'About the same.'

Considering Audrey-from the little Adam had heard of the two women's  conversation when he'd arrived-was still intent on leaving, he wasn't in  the least surprised by Andie's reply.

He shook his head. 'I suppose I'll have to have a chat with him,' he  said reluctantly; ordinarily Rome was the most genial of men, but not  when it came to interference in his personal life. And whether Rome  realised it or not, Audrey was very much in his personal life!

Andie gave a rueful smile. 'He's extremely volatile at the moment, so  make sure you have your body armour on first! I only asked him to pass  me the pepper at dinner last night, and he almost bit my head off,' she  explained with a pained grimace.

Adam groaned. 'Maybe I should come and look at the roses with you before  tackling Rome.' He thought of the confrontation he would no doubt have  with the older man once he had said what he felt needed to be said on  the subject of Audrey's resignation. 'Isn't there some sort of saying  about stopping along the way to smell the roses … ?' he wondered.

Andie laughed as she stood in one fluid movement. 'I think that applies  to people who need to relax more-not someone who wants to avoid someone  else!'

Adam looked up at her appreciatively. Her golden-coloured hair was loose  today, falling silkily down her back, framing the loveliness of her  face, a face dominated by those beautiful green eyes, her skin having  attained a light golden tan from the summer months.

Yet as he continued to look at her he realised there was something different about her …

But as he stood up to accompany her out to the hothouse at the back of  the house, where Barbara had spent so much of her time tending her  beloved roses, he couldn't quite decide what it was.

The heady perfume of the beautiful blooms assailed them as they entered  the heated greenhouse, bringing back vivid memories to Adam of the woman  who had first grown and tended them. Barbara had been such a lovely  woman, inside as well as out, and her death ten years ago, from cancer,  had been yet another blow in Adam's life. He-