Carole Mortimer - To Mend A Marriage

Could she actually change this situation by having Nick make love to her? Gemini knew she would do anything to try to salvage their marriage. Anything at all…. He was so good-looking, Gemini groaned inwardly. The darkness of his hair was ruffled, the hard planes of his face softened by the muted lighting in the room, the warmth of his body seeming to reach out and enfold her.

“Gemini…?” he questioned uncertainly, his gaze narrowed on her flushed face. Flushed because she wanted Nick, wanted him so much she physically ached with it. And the way things stood between them, she knew she had little to lose! Besides, she was Nick’s wife, damn it, and if any woman was entitled to share his bed, it was her! She would not give Nick up without a fight!

CAROLE MORTIMER says, “I was born in England, the youngest of three children—I have two older brothers. I started writing in 1978, and have now written over one hundred books for Harlequin Presents ®.

“I have four sons, Matthew, Joshua, Timothy and Peter, and a bearded collie called Merlyn. I’m very happily married to Peter senior. We’re best friends as well as lovers, which is probably the best recipe for a successful relationship. We live on the Isle of Man.”

My husband,

Peter

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

EPILOGUE

A BABY!

On her doorstep!

This couldn’t be happening. There must be some sort of mistake. And it certainly hadn’t been made by her!

Gemini continued to look blankly at the woman standing beside the carrycot, cursing the fact it was the housekeeper’s day off. She had no doubts that Mrs James would have dealt with this situation in her usual capable manner—probably without bothering Gemini with it at all!

As it was, Gemini had been caught completely off guard when she’d opened the door herself, answering the ring of the doorbell, and found this other woman standing on her doorstep. With a baby in a carrycot she claimed she was here to deliver to Gemini!

Gemini shook her head confidently, dark shoulder-length hair swinging silkily against her cheeks. ‘I never did believe that story about the stork,’ she said dryly. ‘And I hate to disappoint you, but I think there’s been some sort of mistake—’

‘No mistake,’ the other woman assured her happily. ‘Jemima gave me detailed instructions of how to get here, and exactly who I was to leave the baby with. After seeing you, I would have been in no doubt anyway.’ The young woman laughed. ‘The two of you are identical!’

Gemini had stopped listening the moment her twin sister’s name was mentioned, although she stiffened resentfully as the last remark registered. She and Jemima might be identical in looks, but there the similarity ended!

But if her twin were behind this woman’s presence here, Gemini knew she’d better listen to what she had to say…!

She stepped back, holding the door open. ‘Perhaps you had better come inside,’ she sighed. ‘And bring—the baby with you,’ she added reluctantly, not sure if the baby were a boy or a girl—and not particularly interested either way!

‘I’m Janey Reynolds, by the way. Jessica’s nanny,’ the other woman said chattily as they walked down the thickly carpeted hallway. Janey carried the bulky carrycot in front of her, releasing its weight onto the sofa once they were in Gemini’s sitting-room, and then looked about the obviously wealthy comfort of the room with interest.

‘Gemini Stone,’ she introduced herself vaguely, staring at the carrycot as if it were an alien being. Which it was, to her. She had no children of her own. And she wasn’t particularly interested in any her sister might have produced, either!

Or perhaps this was all just someone’s idea of a joke. But it was June, not April, and she didn’t think any of her friends were crazy enough to involve a baby in any prank they pulled on her. Although she only had Janey Reynolds’ word for it that there was a baby in the carrycot; maybe it was empty, and just another part of the joke…?

‘Beautiful, isn’t she?’ Janey Reynolds prompted as Gemini leant cautiously over the side of the carrycot.

She looked like any other baby as far as Gemini was concerned: very pink, very wrinkled, with sparse dark hair—and, thankfully, at this moment her eyes were closed in sleep!

Gemini moved away from the cot as if she had been stung. There was definitely a baby in there. And if this woman were to be believed her sister was involved in its existence.

‘Am I to take it you work for my sister, Jemima?’ She looked at the younger woman with narrowed eyes.

Janey Reynolds looked to be in her early twenties, with an open, friendly face, lightly sprinkled with freckles, and reddish-blonde hair that was brushed back from that gamine face. Her slender figure was clothed in a tee shirt and fitted denims. Ideal wear for looking after a baby.

Whereas Gemini’s own clothes—a silk blouse the same cobalt blue as her eyes and black silk trousers contoured to the tall slenderness of her body had been designed by Gemini herself, to be fashionable as well as comfortable. But, being silk, they were certainly not baby-proof. ‘As Jessica’s nanny,’ Janey nodded, still smiling. ‘I would’ve thought Jemima would have mentioned that to you…?’ She frowned slightly.

As Gemini and Jemima hadn’t seen each other for well over a year now, and the baby in the carrycot looked very young indeed, there wasn’t much likelihood of that. In fact, if her sums were correct, Jemima couldn’t even have been pregnant the last time they’d met. Which begged the question—who was the baby’s father…?

‘Please, sit down,’ Gemini invited coolly, sitting down in the armchair opposite the other woman. ‘Have you worked for my sister for very long?’ she queried lightly, feeling totally in the dark here; she hadn’t even known there was a baby, let alone how old it was!

Janey shook her head. ‘Since the day she came out of the nursing-home. About six weeks,’ she supplied as Gemini still looked blank.

‘I see,’ she said slowly—not seeing anything at all.

Jemima had given birth six weeks ago…. It seemed incredible that her twin could have gone through pregnancy, and then childbirth, without Gemini knowing anything about it. Of course, the emotional connection they’d used to have as children had gone long ago, but even so Gemini thought she would have felt something!

Janey looked a little less sure of herself now. ‘Jemima has been delayed in the States for the weekend at least,’ she said slowly. ‘I would have thought she’d have called you?’

‘Called me?’ Gemini was totally at a loss now.

Not only had she not seen Jemima for over a year, the two of them hadn’t spoken to each other on the telephone, either; the rift between them was just too deep. Why on earth should Janey Reynolds assume that they might have spoken to each other now. Although the obvious answer to that was that the younger woman wasn’t aware there was a rift. Typical of Jemima!

‘About looking after Jessica for a few days until she returns,’ Janey explained with a frown. ‘You see—’

‘What!’ Gemini got up abruptly, totally aghast as what the other woman had just said. She stood as tall as any model, with the sort of slender figure that showed clothes well. Except she didn’t model clothes; she designed them. GemStone was becoming one of the leading designer labels in the world, and Gemini herself was one of the best showpieces for her own clothes: tall, elegant, with a cool beauty the press found as photogenic as each of her new collections.

But that cool beauty was definitely ruffled at the moment—when was it ever anything else when her sister was involved?

‘I’m sure you must have misunderstood Jemima,’ she told the other woman, pleasantly enough, determined not to become panicked. If she could manage to design and organise a new collection of clothes every season, she could definitely handle this—whatever this might be!

‘I don’t think so.’ Janey shook her head, still frowning. ‘As I said, Jemima has been delayed in America—’

‘I understood that bit,’ Gemini assured her coolly. ‘I simply don’t see what that delay has to do with me. You informed me that you are Jessica’s nanny—’

‘Oh, I am.’ Janey Reynolds had started to look upset now. ‘But it’s my wedding day tomorrow.’ She gave a self-conscious smile, ‘So I obviously can’t take care of Jessica until Jemima does return. Your sister assured me that it would be no problem for you to look after Jessica for a few days.’ She chewed worriedly on her bottom lip at this last disclosure.

Of course it would be no problem for Jemima if her baby were left with Gemini—it was Gemini who had the problem with it. For one thing, she knew absolutely nothing about taking care of babies, and secondly, this latest escapade was just typical of Jemima—too busy with her own life to take care of her own responsibilities!

‘Do you have a telephone number in America where Jemima might be reached?’ she prompted impatiently. ‘I’m sure if we speak to her this can all be sorted out in a matter of minutes.’ Because Gemini would insist that her sister get herself back here, delay or no delay, and take care of her own daughter!

Janey looked pained. ‘She’s following through some story or other, and she’s usually the one to call me…’

Gemini wondered just how often ‘usually’ was where her journalist sister was concerned; Jemima was dogged when it came to her work, and stopped at nothing to acquire an exclusive. Or anything else she wanted, for that matter. As Gemini knew to her cost…!

‘Just how long has my sister been in America?’ she questioned shrewdly.

‘Almost a week,’ Janey revealed reluctantly.

Unbelievable, when her baby was obviously so young. Although anything was possible with Jemima. ‘So you have no way of contacting her.’ Gemini spoke almost to herself. ‘And it’s your wedding day tomorrow, so naturally you aren’t going to be around to take care of the baby for some time…’ She looked questioningly at the nanny.

‘I’m going on a two-week honeymoon to Barbados,’ Janey replied, obviously aware by now that her presence here, with Jemima’s baby, was a complete surprise to Gemini.

Gemini should have known; only Jemima would take on for her baby a nanny who was going on holiday mere weeks after being employed!

But none of this mental berating of her sister changed the fact that there was a six-week-old baby that needed looking after—or the fact that Gemini, as her aunt, was the one expected to do it!

At twenty-nine, Gemini had never even considered having any children of her own. She was a career woman, through and through, her designs the only ‘babies’ she was interested in.

Although now it looked as if, for a few days at least, she might have to take an interest in a six-week-old baby called Jessica!

Jemima really did have the most colossal damn cheek; the rift between the two sisters had been abrupt and final, over a year ago. How on earth did Jemima have the nerve to dump her baby on Gemini now after the way she had behaved then…?

Of course, it didn’t help that she knew Nick was going to be absolutely furious about the situation.