A Baby Between Them

“So how did Harrison figure out that one of your friends had killed her?”

“There were a number of things that didn’t add up. In the end, they all pointed to Emerson.” Like Harrison and Gabe, the landscape business owner had been in love with Simone. Only his love had grown into a sick obsession.

“I’m sorry,” Rae said. “I shouldn’t have raised such a painful topic.”

Aidan glanced in the rearview mirror and saw the dark look on his face that must have prompted Rae’s apology. He made an effort to smile. “That’s okay. It happened a long time ago. Now that Harrison is remarried I think a lot of the wounds have begun to heal.”

“Justine is a terrific lady,” Rae agreed.

Aidan pointed up the road. “There’s Lavender Farm.”

He eased off the accelerator. A handcrafted sign, nailed to the twisted, dark red branch of an arbutus tree, read: Lavender Farm Bed-And-Breakfast.

“Pretty,” Rae murmured.

“Wait until you see the rest of the place.”

He drove through a grove of tall cedars, veering slowly to the left, and then suddenly they were in a clearing. The two-story clapboard home sat in the midst of a rambling English-style garden. Ivy grew up and along the porch. Delicate blue hydrangea framed the doorway. And flower beds, mostly of lavender, spread out in all directions.

“I feel like I’m in a fairy tale,” Rae said, her head swiveling as she took in her surroundings. “Or maybe a nursery rhyme. ‘Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?’”

Taken aback by the prosaic comment, Aidan stared at Rae. When she saw him looking, her smile immediately vanished.

“What?” she demanded. “Did you think I was only capable of appreciating a healthy balance sheet and a profitable operating statement?”

Well, yeah. Up until today, he’d mostly seen Rae in a business environment. Now, all of a sudden, she was pregnant and quoting children’s rhymes, and earlier, she’d pulled a loaf of bread from the oven. Okay, that had been out of a package—he’d seen the wrapper on the counter—and she’d burned it so it was inedible, but still, the mere idea that she even knew how to turn on an oven was antithetical to his original view of her.

As Aidan had anticipated, Rae needed help getting out of the front seat. He’d no sooner let go of her hand than he heard his name.

“Aidan!” A woman waved at them from the porch. Jennifer’s blond hair was still long and straight—the same as always. Her smile was welcoming. Uncomplicated. The only thing different about this picture was the baby she had balanced on her hip.

“Hey, Jenn.” Aidan stepped forward to kiss her cheek. “This is Rae Cordell from our Pittsburgh office. And this must be Erica.” He tugged the baby’s bare foot gently.

“Hi, Jennifer. It’s nice to meet you.” Though her words were friendly, Rae didn’t seem as relaxed as she’d been on the drive over. Her smile was stiff now, and she hadn’t removed her sunglasses, even though they stood in shade.

“Rae, I’m glad you could make it on such short notice.” Jennifer shook the other woman’s hand, then glanced back at Aidan, her eyes registering surprise.

He should have told her Rae was pregnant.

“We thought we’d eat outside,” Jennifer said. “We’ve set up the picnic table in the back.”

“Sounds good. I’ll get the food from the car.” As Aidan retrieved the paper bags from the backseat, Rae appeared at his side, holding out a hand for one of the sacks.

“You didn’t tell me she had a baby,” Rae whispered.

“She doesn’t—that’s her niece. She’s babysitting.”

With the baby still resting on her hip, Jennifer led her guests to the back garden. It seemed to Aidan that Rae followed almost reluctantly. What was with her? Suddenly she seemed sorry that she’d decided to come. So then, why had she agreed to the invitation? He certainly hadn’t pressured her into saying yes.

They reached the patio, where a picnic table had been set with a flowered cloth. Plates and cutlery were stacked next to a pitcher of iced tea.

Sitting side by side at the table were Jennifer’s father, Phil, and her aunt Annie. Clearly, the two of them were brother and sister. Both were tall and thin, like Jennifer. However, while Jennifer had fine, feminine features, her aunt’s and father’s faces were stronger, more angular.

Jennifer provided introductions, then settled the baby in a high chair. Aidan noticed that Rae had elected to sit on the edge of the bench farthest away from the small child. He squeezed himself into the middle, between Rae and Jenn.

“So, dear,” Jennifer’s father asked as the food was served, “when is your baby due?”

“In about two weeks, is my guess,” Annie replied.

“Actually, three,” Rae said.

Annie just smiled. “We’ll see.”

“Until she retired last year, my aunt was a midwife in Prince Rupert,” Jennifer explained. “Would you pass the potato salad, please? By the way, Auntie, I used up all our eggs in that salad.”

“I’ll go to the farm tomorrow and buy more.” The older woman passed the salad to her niece. To Rae and Aidan she explained, “Jennifer insists on free-range, organically fed chickens and eggs. That means a trip to the Red Door Farm, which is all the way on the other side of the island.”

“Their eggs are the best,” Jennifer explained. “How many babies do you think you delivered in your career, Auntie?”

“Oh…hundreds. And I can tell by the way Rae is carrying that she’s going to have a—”

“Annie!” Phil admonished. “Maybe Rae wants the sex to be a surprise. What are you hoping for, dear? A boy or a girl?”

Aidan squirmed, uncomfortable on Rae’s behalf. She must get these questions all the time. How did she…

“It doesn’t matter,” Rae said bluntly. “I’m planning to give the child up for adoption.” She twisted to look beyond Aidan to Jennifer. “Can you pass the bowl this way, too, please? I love potato salad.”

CHAPTER FOUR

“BUT AIDAN, I don’t understand.” Jennifer rinsed lingering bubbles from the platter she’d just washed and passed it to him.

“You’re not the only one.” Aidan dried the china carefully. It was covered with an ornate pattern of gold and flowers and looked about a hundred years old. He knew it was part of a set Jennifer had inherited from her mother. Jenn was always buying replacement pieces on eBay.

“Why would Harrison tell you that you could stay at the summer house if Justine had already given a key to Rae?”

Aidan glanced out the window. Rae and Annie were still seated at the picnic table, talking. Phil had offered to put the baby to bed when Erica had fallen asleep in her high chair.

“I think they were in cahoots,” he finally admitted.

Jenn caught on quickly. “You mean they were matchmaking?”

“Yeah.” Damn, but he was going to nail Harrison next time he saw him…

“But isn’t the timing a little off? I mean, with Rae eight months pregnant and all. Unless… Oh, Aidan. You aren’t the father, are you?” She stared at him, oblivious to the fact that she’d left the water running.

He didn’t answer, but his face gave him away.

“Well,” Jennifer said. “That explains a lot.”