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Six
Nate glanced Mia’s way a hundred times during their drive to Santa Monica, where they were having dinner with Trent and Savannah. She looked beautiful in a navy-and-white abstract print sundress, paired with sandals and wavy beach hair. For a dramatic evening look, she’d applied eye shadow and red lipstick. He couldn’t keep his eyes off her.
As he pulled into the parking lot, Mia gave the restaurant a doubtful look. “Are you sure this is a business meeting?”
He nodded, playing innocent when she frowned. He knew what she was thinking, but it wasn’t really a double date. Just a quiet dinner with two couples, at a seaside restaurant with lots of good food and wine. Nope. Not a double date at all.
“It seems a little...”
He fitted the car into a parking spot and cut the engine. “Out-of-the-way?”
“I was thinking more in terms of romantic.”
“Now that you mention it, I see what you mean. But I didn’t pick it. Trent did. I think it might be date night for him and Savannah. That’s not a problem, is it?”
“Sitting across the table from a newly engaged couple won’t bother me a bit.”
“Good. I wouldn’t want you to get any ideas.”
Mia shook her head. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
They were fifteen minutes early for the reservation, but the hostess seated
them at a wonderful table overlooking the Santa Monica pier and the ocean. The sun had already dipped below the horizon and the sky was saturated with rich gold, red and deep blue.
“Tell me more about Trent and Savannah.” Mia’s eyes held a wistful glow as she turned from the view. “Start with why they both have the same last name if they’re only engaged.”
“Savannah is Trent’s former sister-in-law.”
Mia’s eyes widened adorably. “That has to be a tricky situation.”
“It’s quite complicated. They’ve known each other since Savannah was a kid. She came to live with her aunt, who happened to be the Caldwells’ housekeeper, after her mom died and her father couldn’t take care of her. From what Melody tells me, Savannah had a thing for Trent for a long time. When she went off to model in New York City he went out to visit her and they began to...” Nate paused and thought for a moment. “Date.”
“Why the pause?”
“I don’t think Trent realized how he felt about her until after they broke up and she married his brother.”
“So why did she marry him? To get back at Trent?”
“That’s not her style. She was pregnant and Rafe wanted a legitimate heir to carry on the Caldwell name. He was dying when he married her, but no one knew.”
“How old is her son?”
“Just turned a year. And the boy is Trent’s. How that happened is also complicated, but let’s just say Trent was a huge idiot for ever letting her go.”
“Did Trent know about the baby before she married his brother?”
Nate shook his head. “I think if they’d been able to talk to each other when she found out she was pregnant they might have saved themselves a lot of heartache.”
“Why didn’t she tell him?”
“That would be a good question to ask her. I don’t honestly know.”
“I’m glad Trent and Savannah found each other again.” Mia paused while Nate ordered a bottle of pinot grigio from the waiter. “I don’t remember Trent being a part of West Coast Records when Ivy signed with them. How long has he been involved? It’s his family business, isn’t it?”
“That’s another complicated thing. Trent and his father never got along, so he wasn’t involved in the record label. His brother, Rafe took over when their father retired, and mismanaged an already floundering company.”
“My dad told me there were rumors that artists weren’t being paid. That never happened with Ivy, but she was one of their bestselling artists.”
