Joan’s stomach twisted at the memory. She’d never heard this news. It had to have been him, he was the only one that knew about her sister in New York. She knew he was the one that found her overdosed on his bedroom floor. She knew he’d saved her life. But, she didn’t know he’d taken the trouble to track down her sister. What did that mean?
Nothing. It meant nothing. He was just passing the buck. Nothing more.
“What is it?” Lissa asked.
“Oh, I was just thinking.”
“About?”
“How scared I was back then,” Joan admitted.
“You and me both. I’d thought I’d lost you back then. You took mom’s death hard, little sis.”
“I know, I did,” Joan agreed, wiping away fresh tears. “Which was odd, because I thought I hated her, but apparently not.” It was Joan’s turn to cry. But, she wasn’t just thinking about her mother. She was thinking about Antonio. Had he been the one to call Lissa? She thought he’d just dumped her at the hospital because he didn’t want her overdosing in his house. She thought he was disgusted by her and wanted nothing more to do with her. But, if he’d made an effort to call Lissa, didn’t that show at least some concern for her well-being? Maybe those attempts to call her after she’d come out of rehab, weren’t just to reactivate booty calls. Maybe he meant it when he claimed to be concerned about her. Maybe, he still cared for her?
“Joan, what is it?” Lissa said, trying to read her sister’s face.
“I was just thinking how amazing it was that you were there for me sis, in my hour of need. I’ll never forget what you did for me. I love you, Lissa.”
They slipped into another long silence.
“Do you think she’s still alive?”
“I doubt it,” Joan admitted, but then she caught the look of sadness returning to her sister’s face, and she quickly amended her comment. “I mean, I used to think that she was alive – you know, it was all some elaborate drama queen maneuver to garner extra attention when she did come back to life, but after you got engaged to Julio, I knew she had to be dead.”
“What?” Lissa asked.
“Seriously, if our mother was alive, do you think she wouldn’t walk on water to get a seat at your wedding? I mean, Annabel Edwards wouldn’t miss your shindig for the world, unless she was too dead to show up.” They laughed, wiped more tears away, then sat in silence again, two close sisters, who’d been through a lot together.
Joan stretched. “We should probably call the driver and think about heading back. Mamacita and Aunt Sophia are probably pulling their hair out by now, looking after Ryland and Marco by themselves for so long.”
“No, wait,” Lissa said, “Wasn’t there something you wanted to talk to me about? I’m sorry I wasn’t listening before during out walk. Tell me what was on your mind, and then we’ll go.”
Lissa sat back in her seat, expectantly, all ears.
Joan felt her chest tighten her throat go dry. She’d changed her mind about quitting now, or even shortly after the honeymoon. She needed to come up with something else, but her brain was frozen, and no believable idea was coming to her.
“I wanted to tell you something? Funny, I can’t remember what it was, must not have been important.” Joan lied.
Lissa gave her a look which said, I don’t believe you. But, Joan stuck to her guns. Now wasn’t the time to abandon her sister. Lissa was just coming to terms with her mother’s death. Joan had no idea that she’d never accepted it before. It would be the height of cruelty after the meltdown she’d just witnessed to spring a big change like she planned to quit now. She could wait. What were a few more months, in the scheme of things?
“Joan, what aren’t you telling me?”
“Oh, yeah, I remember. It was no big deal.”
“Then tell me.”
“Uh, I’ll tell you on the way back. I need to go to the ladies’ room, call the driver, okay?”
“Sure, fine, but I’m not letting you out of the limo until you tell me what’s going on.”
Just then, Hunter woke up, and immediately let out a series of loud, grunting noises.
“Uh, oh,” Lissa and Joan both said at the same time.
As they focused their attentions on Hunter, his eyes squeezed shut and his face reddened. Both sisters wrinkled their noses at the same moment, then started to laugh.
“You better take him with you,” Lissa said.
Joan hurried to get Hunter out of his stroller, while Lissa helped sling the heavy diaper bag over her free shoulder. Holding Hunter out in front of her as far as she could, Joan hurried to the find a bathroom at the rear of the café.
When she came out of the restroom with a fresh and powdered Hunter she noticed that there was a commotion in the center of the café and excitement in the air as people seemed to crowd around a man. Joan got a busboy’s attention, “What’s going on?”
“It’s Antonio Ferraro, the soccer player,” he said, excitedly.
Joan gasped and as her world tilted.
Then her eyes fell on him, and even though all she could see was the profile of his Adonis face, it was enough to make her stop breathing.
This couldn’t be happening—not, Antonio—not, here—not, now.
Joan fled back to the restroom, holding Hunter tight to her chest like a life preserver.
IN THE BATHROOM, JOAN leaned against the wall and tried to catch her breath. Of all the places in the world, he had to walk into that café, now. She checked her face for signs of baby poop, fixed her hair as best she could and then went back into the café, hoping that she could walk past him and he wouldn’t see her.
Antonio had drawn a crowd, and it wasn’t easy to walk past in the narrow space. She tried not to look at him, as she turned her body sideways and held Hunter up in front of her face like a shield, but her eyes betrayed her. They roamed up and down his body, causing a jolt in her stomach, a tingle she hadn’t felt in a long, long time. Damn him. Damn his sexy body. Damn the way he always made her beyond hot for him. She tore her eyes away and, focusing on the exit, safety, escape, she held her breath and tried to keep going. She’d gotten all of two feet past him, breathing in his scent as a consolation prize, when one of the fans jostling to get an autograph stepped in front of her, knocking her off balance.
She tried to right herself, so she wouldn’t drop the baby, but ended up overcompensating, and slammed against Antonio.
Before she could back away, Hunter reached out and grabbed onto Antonio’s hair.
“Hey!” Antonio cried, his eyes flashing with anger, until he saw that the attacker was just a baby.
He put on that devastating smile that he was so famous for, and Joan’s heart skidded across her chest, as he spoke directly to the child in her arms. “No worries, little bambino.” But, then his eyes focused on Joan, and she saw the flash of recognition pass over his dark brown, and then lock onto hers, then travel back to the baby in her arms. She saw a shadow of disappointment move across his face, but then the smile returned. “Joan Edwards?”
Joan wanted to keep moving away from him, but she couldn’t breathe let alone move. Butterflies exploded in her stomach. Being so close to him, to the man who’d stolen her heart, and then tore it to shreds...The walls were closing in on her. She had to get away before she was lost again. As if he could read her mind, his charming smile transformed into a smirk. It was as if, he knew how her body was reacting to seeing him again. It was as if he knew that he could have her if he still wanted her.
Christ. She had to go. Now! But, her feet had turned into bricks, and she remained in her spot. Her throat closed, her mind unable to form words.
“Well?” he asked.
Joan snapped her mouth shut, as she realized it had been hanging open.
Shit.
She needed to get control of herself. She shook her head to dissipate the confusion in her mind and plastered a surprised smile on her face. “Antonio? What a surprise.” She leaned forward as best she could with a
baby in her arms and offered her cheeks for an air kiss. Then nerves kicked in and she started to prattle. “What are you doing in Barcelona? I thought you lived in Milan; I thought you were playing for AC Milan?”
Antonio’s face lit up; then his smirk got cockier. Joan wanted to slap that look off his face, and then she wanted to kiss it better. “So, you have been following my career,” Antonio said, his voice dropping, the huskiness making her swallow, as she watched his eyes rake slowly over her body. “I thought, you’d lost interest in me.”
Joan’s knees were rubber as he continued to eye her. When his gaze froze on her slightly parted lips, she involuntarily bit her lip. His eyes flashed, and she feared he could hear her heart as it jack-hammered in her chest. There was a mischievous twinkle in his eye as his gaze bore into hers. For a moment she returned the look of desire and, for a moment, they made an unspoken pact, but then Joan remembered why she’d refused to take his call.
She stepped back. Antonio’s smirk faded as he noticed her reticence, then his eyes fell on Hunter and a brief look of sadness crossed his face.