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Chapter Five
Jennie hesitated before opening the door at this time of the night. Kind of figuring it would be Lisa who’d left her key behind, nevertheless, she checked the monitor and the shock of a lifetime waited to be let in.
Her breathing accelerated to where she almost passed out. According to the people she worked with, this never happened to her… she was a level-headed, cool-mannered agent who seldom got rattled.
Surprise! Not this time. Her whole body began to shake.
He looked the same, just older. She took some time to let her brain accept that the person who waited for her to open up was truly Kane Lambert. Gasping in air and forcing her limbs to hold her upright, she ran her fingers through her messy long waves and looked down at the sweats she usually lazed around in on nights when she expected no one and had no date.
God only knew how she wished she was wearing her work clothes or at least normal duds and not the overly washed-out sweats from Quantico she’d never been able to part with. They were especially her favorites when she’d just stepped from the tub and reached for her coziest clothes.
Before she had a chance to make any decisions, the doorbell rang again and this time, the bell-pusher wasn’t stopping. If she didn’t do something soon, her baba would wake up for sure, and then the shit would hit the fan.
Grabbing the handle, she yanked hard and growled. “What the hell is wrong with you? People like to sleep at this time of the night.”
“You weren’t sleeping, I saw you through the blinds, watching TV.”
“Now you’re a peeping tom as well as a nuisance. What do you want? Don’t you think it’s a bit late to come calling now, and I’m not referring to the hour?”
“Yeah. Right. Sorry about that. Things happened. Look can I come in so we can talk?”
“Nope. You can get the hell out of here. I don’t want anything to do with you. You’re twenty years and a whole bunch of heartache too late.”
“I know. Lisa came to see me earlier. That’s why I’m here.” He fidgeted, his hands sweeping through his recently washed hair. “Look, I never knew you were pregnant. Finding out I’m a father is… ahh, what can I say? It’s not a good time for me.”
“Well, poor you. Strangely, I know just how you feel. It was the same for me at sixteen.”
“Right. Sorry. Look, truth is, I never knew.”
“How could you know? You took off one night, never to be seen or heard from since. I had to go through everything to do with having a baby by myself. If my baba hadn’t stood by me, I don’t know what I would have done.”
Kane’s expression changed, softened. “She’s a good woman.”
In contrast, her eyes hardened. “Yeah, someone with a heart. Unlike you. You just left – disappeared.” If the tone of those words weren’t accusing, they were meant to be. She’d spent many hours practicing what she’d say and the accusations she’d hurl his way if he ever resurfaced. She’d end with leave me alone and don’t come back.
Problem was… he never did come back for her to be able to say them and twenty years later seemed like overkill. To bitch over what had happened so long ago had lost its power. After all, hadn’t Lisa been one of the best things that had ever happened to her? Not for one second did she ever regret her decision to go ahead with the pregnancy.
Of course, it hadn’t seemed so easy when she’d been sixteen and terrified. Her grandmother had made the difference… enabling her to have her baby. She often thanked God for not being in the horrible position where she’d have had no choice, no one to help or support her so she could carry on the pregnancy.
Incredibly sick and heartbroken for the first trimester, she hadn’t been able to work. God, the nightmare of those times when she’d felt so alone. Kane had vanished, and she’d hated knowing she’d let her baba down after all the sacrifices she’d made for Jennie to have a good education and a career.
The older Polish woman had taken her in after both her parents died in a boating accident. And the only reason she hadn’t been with them was because her own mother had promised Baba a day a month with Jennie and that had been their day.
Thankfully, her baba had been an angel. Not once had she made Jennie feel guilty or in the way. Quite the opposite. It had been that strong woman who’d built them a future giving Jennie the time she’d needed to finally get her head on straight and start working for both her and Lisa. Hard times but filled with a lot of love and laughter.
“Are you going to let me in? We need to talk. By the way, is Lisa here?”
“No to all three. Go away.” Closing the door, she didn’t see his foot wedged in the opening. When she did notice his breach, she stood back, crossed her arms, and glared. “Really? Now? Twenty years too late and it’s nearly midnight. Classy, Lambert, real classy.”
Forcing her to step back, he pushed his way inside and closed the door softly behind him. “Someone sleeping?”
“Yeah, my boyfriend. So… say what you have to say and don’t wake him up. He’s a bear when that happens.”
Kane glanced around and then grinned, not an ounce of humor showing. “Can we go into the living room or kitchen then instead of standing in the hallway? I could use a cup of .”
“No. Say what you have to say and then leave.”
Before he could answer, a voice could be heard from down the hallway. Feminine, old, and with a distinctly broken accent, “Is dat Lisa, Jennie?”
