Daddy Wanted

“Capia?”

“The capia doll is like a keepsake, a doll made up to look just like the quinceañera in all her birthday finery. And the capias are ribbon favors with Maria’s name and the date printed on them. The doll is covered with the ribbons, and after they’re all distributed to party guests, the doll is revealed.”

“And you went through this when you were fifteen?”

Jennifer smiled and shook her head. “No. I was the family rebel. Of course, I had the mass and I was forced to wear a pretty dress. But I insisted on a small party with just close family. And I made my father give all the money he’d put aside for my quinceañera to a homeless shelter. Maria, on the other hand, prefers to follow tradition and spend as much of Papi’s money as possible.”

“I didn’t expect anything quite so elaborate.”

“If you think this is big, wait until tomorrow. There’s the mass and then the party. Tomorrow morning the party planners and caterers and musicians will come and transform the backyard into something resembling a fairyland. Maria will have her court of honor—probably fourteen damas and chambelanes, plus Teresa for her flower girl and Linda for her princess. After the mass, they’ll all walk in with her and Mamá and Papi and the padrinos. That’s called la marcha. Knowing Maria’s flair for the theatric, there will be choreographed dancing. It all leads up to the big moment—the presentation, when la niña is transformed into una señorita. When she changes from a girl to a young lady.”

“How does that happen?” Ryan asked.

“She changes her shoes,” Jennifer said.

“No, really, I want to know.”

“That’s how it happens. She’ll begin a waltz with Papi and then the music will stop and she’ll walk to a chair in the middle of the dance floor in flats. Then Mamá will change her shoes to heels and she’ll finish her waltz with Papi. And after that, she’ll dance with all her chambelanes, the boys on the court. Those are mostly cousins and sons of Papi and Mamá’s friends. She saves the last dance for her chambelán de honor, which will probably be my brother, Joe.”

Ryan released a long breath. “Wow, it’s like a wedding.”

“It’s bigger than a wedding,” Jennifer said.

He turned to her and tugged her closer. “I’m glad you asked me to come. Meeting your family gives me a keener insight into you.”

“And what have you figured out?”

“That you’re a pretty fascinating woman,” he said.

She playfully bumped against him. “You are too charming, Ryan Madison. No wonder my sister Teresa is in love with you.” Jennifer pointed to a tree at the other end of the pool. “She’s watching us. Why don’t you go over and ask her to dance. You’ll make her day.”

Jennifer watched as he circled the pool and stood beneath the old cottonwood tree. He held up his arms and Teresa jumped into them. He set her down and she wiped the dirt from her hands on her pretty white dress. Before long, they were dancing the night away on the makeshift dance floor.

Jennifer managed to steal a dance with him, a pretty Julio Iglesias ballad, after Teresa was ordered to bed. They moved around the terrace to the soft sounds of the small mariachi combo and the high, wavering voice of the singer. Jennifer looked over to the house to find her parents watching them both from the terrace. “Maybe we should tell them now,” she murmured, resting her cheek against Ryan’s chest, exhaustion suddenly overwhelming her.

“Not just yet,” he said, his breath soft on her temple.

She sighed softly, then drew a deep breath, enjoying the scent of his cologne. “All right,” she murmured. “Not just yet.”

In the end, they danced until the band stopped playing, both of them anxious to avoid the conflict that would surely accompany Jennifer’s revelations. As the party guests slowly made their way home, she walked with Ryan to the house, then showed him to one of the three guest rooms that her mother had prepared.

“I guess we’ll tell them tomorrow,” she said, standing outside the door. “Maybe that’s for the best.”

Ryan pulled her into his arms and gave her a hug. “I’ll see you in the morning,” he said, his fingers skimming her cheek. He wanted to kiss her then, she could see it in his eyes. And she wanted him to capture her mouth and send sweet, stirring sensations racing through her body. But during the party, they’d been playacting, pretending to be a devoted couple for the benefit of her family.

Here in the hall outside his room, it was just the two of them. Two people with nothing more between them than a simple favor. “Yes,” she murmured. “I’ll see you at breakfast.”

He slipped inside his bedroom and closed the door behind him. Jennifer groaned inwardly and leaned back against the wall. Then she glanced down at the diamond she’d kept hidden all night long. She’d never thought much about marriage, never dated a man with whom she’d consider spending her life. But this little game they were playing had given her a taste of what a real relationship might be like.

A soft sigh slipped from her lips and she reached up and rubbed her forehead. It would be so easy to fall for him. But was this really the first stirrings of love she felt? Or was it just desperation? Was she looking for a man to spend her life with or was she simply looking for a father for her baby?

She pushed away from the wall and slowly walked toward her room at the end of the hall. The only thing she knew for sure was that she wouldn’t figure it all out in one night.

* * *

THE NIGHT WAS perfectly silent, so quiet Ryan could almost hear the stars twinkling in the dark sky. He stretched out on a chaise longue at the far end of the pool and stared down into the illuminated water. The reflection cast wavering shadows all around him, lulling him into a contemplative mood.

His thoughts turned to Jennifer and he glanced out across the wide lawn to the house and tried to imagine her lying in bed, her hair tumbled across her pillow in silken waves, her lips parted slightly as she slept, her body warm and inviting.

As he’d tossed and turned in his own bed, he fought the urge to slip into her room. To wake her and spend just a few more hours in her company, holding her, talking in quiet words. He’d grown to love the sound of her voice, the lilting trace of Mexico that made every sentence like a tiny phrase of music. And her eyes, glittering with mischief or filled with emotion, so dark and deep he could disappear inside them…

Ryan closed his eyes, drawing deeply of the cool air. The sounds of the night surrounded him, and when he opened his eyes again, his gaze came to rest on a vision…a dream that had suddenly become real.

She walked down the steps of the terrace, barefoot, her hair blown by the soft breeze, her nightgown made translucent by the light behind her. He watched her limbs move gracefully beneath the thin fabric as she strolled toward him. When she reached the pool, the light from the water illuminated her face. At that moment in time, Ryan was certain he’d never seen anything or anyone quite as beautiful.

“What are you doing out here?” she asked.

“I couldn’t sleep,” he said, ignoring the flood of desire that had pooled in the vicinity of his lap. “Strange room, strange bed.”

“Strange situation,” Jennifer added. “But you did a good job tonight. I think everyone believed we were a couple.”

“Good. It wasn’t too difficult. You’re pretty easy to be nice to.”

Jennifer smiled. “Have I told you how much I appreciate what you’re doing?”

“Yes,” he replied. “Several times.”

She crossed her arms beneath her breasts. “It seems like a lot to do. I mean, in comparison with what I did for you. I turned your life upside down and you’re trying to help me keep mine upright.”

“It’s all right.”

“No, it’s not,” Jennifer said. “I feel like I owe you an explanation.”

He patted the cushion between his legs. “Sit.” Jennifer did as she was told, settling between his legs and leaning back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her bare shoulder, the scent of her perfume tickling his nose. God, he loved holding her. Her body seemed to fit perfectly against his. “You don’t have to say anything. I don’t need explanations.”

“But I want to tell you,” she said. “I haven’t told anyone and maybe it’s time I talked about it.”

“All right,” Ryan said softly.

She paused for a long moment, as if putting all the words in order before she began. “We met at a lunchtime concert at Odessa College right before Memorial Day. Our offices are close by and I picked up lunch and decided to go listen to this bluegrass band. He sat down beside me and we started talking.” She paused again. “His name was Jim Kestwick and he was a nice guy, clean cut, well-mannered. It turns out he’s an officer in the Navy and he serves on an aircraft carrier. He was visiting his parents on leave. We spent three days together and he was charming and exciting and I thought I knew what I was doing. Then he told me he was engaged to a woman who lived out East. God, what a cliché I am! I thought I was smarter than that.”

“It’s not your fault,” Ryan said, smoothing her hair with his fingers. “Men can be such jerks.”

She glanced over her shoulder, twisting in his embrace until she could look at him. “I’ve never done anything like that in my life. When I realized I was pregnant, I called him. He came home once more before his ship was deployed again, so I met him and we talked. First, he didn’t believe the baby was his. Then he didn’t want anything to do with either one of us—me or the baby—and I guess I was glad that he’d made that decision. It made my life simpler.”

“So you decided to have the baby alone,” he murmured.

“There was no decision to be made. I know I can be a good mother. And though this isn’t the traditional route to parenthood, I’ve never been a very traditional person.” She drew a ragged breath than let it out slowly. “It feels good to tell someone. I’ve been so reluctant to talk about it. I didn’t want people to think less of me, although they’d have good reason.”