Page 18 of Wedding Whitney
“No, not at all. Nothing like that. I don’t know why Dr. Sellers couldn’t find your test results—they were on my desk—but everything is fine. You don’t carry the gene, and you and Jake will hopefully have as many babies as you’d like.”
“Oh thank goodness, that’s fantastic.”
“Listen, I want to apologize for my colleague. He’s been a grump with everyone lately, and this whole thing with your test results ticked me off. It’s like he didn’t even try to find them, and he could have looked it up on the computer, with you sitting there. The fact that he didn’t means we have to have a conversation, but I wanted to call you back as soon as I could.”
“I really appreciate it. Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome. Do you want me to put copies in the mail to you?”
“Would you mail them to my Alaska address?” I ask.
“Absolutely. And congratulations on your upcoming wedding.”
“Thank you.”
I disconnect and immediately call Jake.
To my disappointment, it goes straight to voicemail. I don’t leave a message, wondering what’s going on with him.
My grandmother’s driver asks me where we’re going, and I hesitate. I would prefer it if he could take me to wherever Jake is.
If I only knew where he is, what he’s doing, or what he’s thinking.
I lean back in the seat, staring out at nothing.
“The mall,” I say at last.
Since I don’t want to bother any of my friends, I opt for the next best thing. Maybe, if I spend enough money, I’ll feel better by the time Jake calls me back. If nothing else, I’ll be in a better mood because between Jake’s early morning disappearance and tonight’s family dinner, I have a feeling I’m going to need all the help I can get.
It probably isn’t the best coping mechanism, but it’s all I have at the moment.
Chapter 11
Jake
Whitney isn’t home when I get to the house, so I head up to my room to shower and get ready for tonight’s dinner. It’s after four and dinner is at seven, so I might even have time for a short nap.
God knows I didn’t sleep for shit last night.
I shower, change, and then go downstairs to see if Whitney is home yet. She’s not in her room, and I’m just about to call her when I see I’ve missed a call from her. I curse myself for not noticing it sooner. I’ve just put the phone to my ear when a motion at the bottom of the stairs catches my attention.
“There you are.” Canyon gestures with his head. “Do you have a minute, Jake? We’d like to have a talk with you.”
I frown and stuff my phone back in my pocket, but I head the rest of the way downstairs and follow them into Lillian’s den. She isn’t there, but Brett shuts the double doors behind us and leans against the gilded marble fireplace, a smug look on his face.
Whatever this is makes me uneasy, and I look at Canyon curiously. “What’s going on?”
“Look, I’m not going to beat around the bush. There’s no doubt that you’re not comfortable here in our life, and we’re not thrilled to have you around either. I’ve also gotten wind of this situation with your genetics or whatever the hell is wrong with you. What I want to know is, how much would it take to make you go away?”
“Excuse me?” I just stare at him. “You realize money is the last thing you could ever bribe me with?”
“Nonsense. Everyone has a price. Five million? Ten?”
“You don’t have that kind of money,” I say, perching on the edge of Lillian’s desk. “And you know damn well I’m not leaving Whitney.”
“Rumor also has it you two have been arguing and at odds for days, and she was very upset with you this morning at breakfast,” Brett continues as if I hadn’t said anything. “Sounds to me like there’s already trouble in paradise. Why not get out now, before it’s legal, and save us all the headache of a big, messy divorce?”
“There’s no trouble anywhere,” I say firmly. “I just needed to clear my head, so I went for a run this morning before she was awake. Then I had to pick up my best man from the airport, and we hung out. Whitney knows where I’ve been.”
