The Marriage Test

  What if she kissed him?

  The idea tantalized. One kiss. For old times’ sake.

  Sara glanced at Alec from beneath her lashes, shocked to find he was staring at her. She turned to face him, licking her lips in nervousness.

  His expression didn’t change, but the air became supercharged. Could she do this?

  Daringly, she moved closer still, until her mouth brushed his.

  His response was instantaneous and all she could have hoped for when he pulled her into his arms and opened his mouth against hers.

  To have and to hold…

  Their marriage was meant to last—

  and they have the gold rings to prove it!

  To love and to cherish…

  But what happens when their promise

  to love, honor and cherish is put to the test?

  From this day forward…

  Emotions run high as husbands and wives discover

  how precious—and fragile—their wedding vows are….

  Will true love keep them together—forever?

  Marriages meant to last!

  His Trophy Wife (#3672)

  by Leigh Michaels

  Barbara loves to hear from readers.

  You can contact her at www.barbaramcmahon.com

  THE MARRIAGE TEST

  Barbara McMahon

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER ONE

  ALEC BLACKSTONE stood beside his suitcase watching the Jeep bounce gently down the sloping road. Once around the bend, the sound of the engine faded.

  Silence enveloped him.

  He gazed around in disgust. Trees. A million trees. The sun shone in a cloudless sky. Through the glossy leaves and long needles, he could see the gleam of sunlight reflecting on the lake a short distance away. The sweet scent of honeysuckle mingled with the pungent scent of pine wafting on the warm springtime air.

  Without warning one of the now-familiar dizzy spells struck. He reached out to steady himself with the porch railing, clunking the heavy cast. That started his arm throbbing again. Biting off an expletive, he waited until the dizziness passed. Nothing like a reality check to remind him why he was in some backwater resort instead of striding into court for a case, or meeting with opposing counsel.

  Ignoring the pounding ache in his right arm, he reached for his suitcase and laptop with his left hand and turned to enter the log cabin. That accident must have addled his brains. What was he doing here, sequestered in some hideaway retreat when Boston was his normal turf?

  While appearing rustic, the cottage purported to provide all the conveniences a guest could wish. Or so Wyatt had told him.

  Alec wished Wyatt and Elizabeth had never suggested he take their spot at the resort. Or that he hadn’t been foolish enough to agree. He could have managed fine at his apartment. He wasn’t going to recuperate any faster in some out-of-the-way resort in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York. However long it took to heal was however long it would take.

  Nothing for it now. He was here and would make the most of it—as long as he had his cell phone to keep in touch with the office. He’d brought his portable computer, too. He could hook up the modem and have his secretary forward anything he needed to deal with. If he had to print something, surely he could get a ride into a decent size town to find a printer? His secretary could always mail anything that wasn’t urgent.

  Stepping inside, Alec noticed without much curiosity how spacious the living room was—with its high ceiling and huge old stone fireplace. Even though it was May, it got cool in the evenings in the mountains. He’d enjoy a fire to take the chill off at night.

  Open stairs along one wall led to the second floor. Tucked almost under them in the rear was a swinging door—probably leading to the kitchen. But there was time enough to explore. What else did he have to do for the next three weeks?

  Placing his laptop computer on a small table near the door, Alec carried his bag upstairs. There were two doors, both opened, and through each he saw a bed, a dresser and a table. It didn’t matter which bedroom he chose. He turned left.

  The room was long with a sloping ceiling—elevated in the center yet barely high enough to avoid hitting his head at the side wall. Something to be avoided at all costs after receiving that concussion.

  Unpacking didn’t take long. He glanced around when he finished, checked his watch, frowning. It wasn’t even noon. What was he supposed to do for the rest of the day?

  He’d packed a few bestsellers, but didn’t feel like reading.

  With his headaches and the dizziness that hit unexpectedly, he didn’t dare wander far from the cabin.

  Great, he was stuck in the back of beyond with nothing to do and eighteen long days ahead of him. He’d never make it without going stark-raving crazy!

  A door slammed.

  Had he left the front door ajar and the wind blown it shut? No, he was certain he’d closed it. Slowly descending the stairs, he heard a noise from the back of the house. Had the resort personnel brought food? He hadn’t even thought about that yet and suddenly realized that as isolated as he was, without a car, meals could prove a problem.

  Naturally he could call the front desk and have them send a Jeep to take him to the main lodge. The restaurant there was supposed to be four stars. He didn’t have to cook if he didn’t want to. Yet, as often as he ate out, he might like the novelty of cooking for himself. Once he felt better.

  Pushing open the swinging door to the kitchen, Alec stopped in total surprise. A woman casually dressed in jeans and a long checked shirt leaned against the counter, obviously waiting for the teakettle to boil.

  A very familiar woman.

  But someone he had never expected to see here! And while the face was familiar, the body sure wasn’t.

  He felt the shock like a kick in the gut, his eyes unable to leave her waist. Sara was pregnant?

  “What the hell is going on?” he roared. Shock blocked out any delight he might have felt at seeing her. Known for his ability to analyze new testimony instantly, his mind inexplicably shut down. He could only stare dumbfounded at her trying to absorb what he was seeing.

  The world seemed to tilt on its axis.

  “Alec?” She spun around. Her black hair gleamed in the sunlight streaming in through the tall windows. While almost as short as his at the back, she grew it longer on the sides where it covered the tips of her ears. The feathery bangs normally made her dark eyes look large and mysterious. Now they held shocked disbelief.

  His gaze was still locked at her waist as he tried to take in the fact that his wife, whom he hadn’t seen in months, was pregnant. Very pregnant. And he hadn’t known a thing about it!

  “What are you doing here?” Sara asked.

  “Never mind me.” He looked up at her and caught the wary look in her face. “Was there something you needed to tell me?” he asked softly, his voice as hard as tempered steel.

  He watched as she swallowed, her gaze never leaving his. Taking a breath she stalled for time as a myriad of expressions crossed her face.

  “I’m pregnant,” she said at last.

  Fury burned as he continued to stare, the strength of his feelings foreign to him. Normally he could control his emotions, but not in the face of this.

  “Who’s the father?” he asked.

  She reacted as if he’d slapped her, her head snapping back, her eyes widening.

  “You are, of course!” she retorted, color flooding her cheeks. “What a rotten thing to say. Whose else could it be?”

  “I have no idea. You walked out on me, remember?”

  He didn’t have a lot of experience with pregnant women, but she looked enormous. “How far along are you?”

  She hesitated only a moment before replying. “Almost eight months.”

  “Eight months! In all that time you couldn’t pick up the phone to call and let me know about this?” Anger grew. If she was truly pregnant with his child, why hadn’t she let him know? No matter how far apart they’d grown, there was no excuse to keep this from him! Her leaving had left a hole in his life. To compound the situation by deliberately keeping him in the dark about their baby was inexcusable.

  “Or maybe there’s another reason,” he said silkily, wanting to hear her denial again, afraid she might not repeat it.

  She tilted her chin up and glared at him. “I resent your implications. I didn’t leave you to go to some other man. You know full well why I left.”

  “I know why you said you were leaving. Did being pregnant have anything to do with it?”

  “Of course not. I didn’t know I was pregnant when I left.”

  He eyed her considerable girth, lifting one eyebrow in skepticism. “I shouldn’t think it could have been long afterward that you found out.”

  She shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest as if in protection.

  “I should have told you, I guess,” she said reluctantly.

  “You guess!”

  “All right, it was wrong. I kept meaning to…” He waited. Years of dealing with criminals had honed his technique. Most people were uncomfortable with extended silence and would rush to fill the void.

  “I—the time was just never right,” she said.
r />   “Did you ever plan to tell me?” he asked, trying to hold on to the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him. How dare she keep this from him! No matter how their marriage had ended, she should have told him as soon as she discovered she was pregnant! It was his baby, too.

  “Yes, of course.”

  “When? After he graduated from college?”

  “I don’t know. When the time was right.”

  “Do Wyatt and Elizabeth know?”

  She nodded.

  Dammit! Alec wanted to smash something. His own brother had known and not told him. His fist hit the doorjamb in frustration.

  Sara crossed to the table, turned and paced back, as if she couldn’t stay still. “You could have called,” she said at last.

  “You left me. You knew where I was.”

  “And if you had cared at all, you would have called at least once to see if I was all right.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Are you all right? Is the pregnancy normal?”

  “I’m fine, that’s not the point.”

  “And the point is?”

  “That if you didn’t care enough about me to see if I was doing all right why would I think you would be interested in learning you were about to become a father?”

  A father. He wasn’t ready. The only time they’d talked about children, he’d insisted they wait. He wasn’t sure he would ever be ready to assume that role in someone’s life. Moot point now. It looked as if the choice had been taken from him—which instantly sparked another thought. Had she deliberately gotten pregnant?

  Sara narrowed her eyes. “So what are you doing here?”

  “I’m staying here. Did you do this on purpose?”

  “What, come here? And you can’t stay. I’m staying here!”

  “I meant, did you deliberately get pregnant?”

  She shook her head vehemently. “I guess no birth control is foolproof. You have to admit the timing is terrible—a single woman, no husband in the picture.”

  “Because of your departure.”

  She shrugged. “We could argue the point all night. But you need to find other accommodation.”

  “Wyatt and Elizabeth booked this place for their vacation. When he got that assignment in Europe and decided to leave early to vacation there, he offered me use of this place.” Offered was a euphemism. Wyatt had practically forced it down Alec’s throat. But Sara didn’t need to know that. She had forfeited her right to know anything about him. Wasn’t that the way she wanted it?

  He frowned, was that the way she felt, too—that he had no right to know about her? Was that why she hadn’t told him about the baby?

  “Elizabeth offered the place to me. I wanted to get away and this was perfect,” Sara said in dismay. “She didn’t say anything about your coming here.”

  “Maybe Wyatt didn’t tell her.” Or maybe his brother and sister-in-law had plotted what they saw as a perfect setup to get Alec and Sara together to see if they could patch up their marriage.

  Only neither knew the full situation. There was no marriage left to patch up.

  “Well, I’m sorry, but I’ve been planning this for a while. You’ll have to make other arrangements,” Sara said shortly.

  “How could you have been planning this for long? They just learned a week ago about the trip to Europe.” The day before the car crash that had broken his arm and given him a concussion.

  “I’ve been planning time off from work for months. This was a perfect start to my maternity leave. Elizabeth suggested this place to me last week.”

  “If you are close enough to delivery to go on maternity leave, what are you doing out here, miles from the nearest hospital?” If she didn’t have sense enough to take care of herself, she should at least think of the baby.

  “I have enough time, there’s more than six weeks before the baby’s due. I’ll be back in Boston in plenty of time to deliver. I checked with my doctor, she said it was all right.”

  How many other people had known about the baby? Alec wondered, anger still churning. How could all of them think it was better that the father not know?

  Sara appeared nervous, he recognized the signs. Well she should be. He hadn’t been this angry when she’d walked out. The knowledge he was about to become a father was overwhelming. She’d had eight months to get used to the idea of becoming a mother—he’d been denied that time.

  “Where are you living? Do you need help with the baby?”

  “A little late for that, don’t you think?”

  “And whose fault is that? Dammit, Sara, you should have told me!”

  “And what would you have done?” she challenged, hands on her hips as she glared at him. Bravado, he suspected. He could tell she was putting up a front. Feeling guilty, maybe, for withholding the news?

  “Made sure you were home where you belonged,” he said, stepping closer. He could smell the fragrance she always wore, and memories ached. It had been too long. Without thought, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

  Sensations erupted unexpectedly. The kiss was wild and exciting—and as passionate as ever—despite the anger that bubbled just below the surface. He’d not forgotten a thing about the complex, confusing woman whom he’d married eighteen months ago. For a moment it was like coming home. She tasted the same—sweet as honey. And the explosion of his senses was fantastic—like they’d never been apart, as if the differences that separated were swept away—

  Then the awkwardness of their embrace penetrated as he became aware of her protruding stomach. She definitely didn’t feel like the woman he’d married!

  Raising his head, he gazed down into her shimmering eyes. She pulled back and crossed her arms over her chest defensively.

  “If you didn’t have time for me when we lived together, why would I think you’d make time for a baby?” she asked bluntly.

  “That wasn’t your decision to make. You should have told me,” he said. Spinning around he strode from the room, slapping the swinging door out of the way in an effort to dissipate some of the roiling emotions that still choked him. He didn’t stop until he was on the porch. He saw nothing of the beauty before him, not the trees, the lake nor the cloudless sky. The only reality in his world was the fact he’d just learned his wife was almost eight months pregnant. And he hadn’t known.

  As the endless moment passed, he considered her question—what would he have done? Insisted she move back into their apartment? Learned everything he could about babies in the months he had until it arrived? Readjusted his thinking to accept the fact he was soon to become a father?

  God, he was going to be a father! He knew nothing about the job!

  Sara stood still, watching Alec storm from the room, her knees feeling as shaky as a wet noodle. She couldn’t think straight. His kiss had been angry, but it hadn’t mattered. For one glorious moment, she’d been immersed in the delight of his embrace—which she’d thought she’d never experience again. She certainly had never envisioned a kiss under these circumstances.

  What had gone so wrong between them? And why?

  Turning as the teakettle whistled shrilly, she switched off the gas and stared at the kettle, unable to move. Seeing him had been a shock. The feelings that had initially flared gave way to guilt when he appeared so stunned at the discovery.

  She should have told him months ago. Should have let him share in the anticipation of the birth of their baby. Guilt swept through, built. He was right, she’d been wrong. And she didn’t like the feeling. But the time had never seemed right.

  She’d wanted to shout with jubilation when she found out—but their marriage had already ended and she’d felt she had enough to cope with.

  No, all the excuses in the world wouldn’t justify her keeping the news a secret. She took a deep breath. She had to make things right—or as right as she could given the situation.

  Slowly she walked from the room. Where was he?

  The front door stood open. She could see him standing at the porch railing, staring off across the expanse of clearing, toward the lake. She’d rather go to the dentist than face this, but there was no choice. She didn’t know when she’d see him again, best to get it done.

  “Alec?” she said pushing open the screen door.

  He turned slowly, studied her, giving nothing away in his expression.

  “If you didn’t know I’d be here, why did you come?”