“Hi, Lizzie baby, how are you doing?”
She groaned. “I’ve been barfing my guts up all morning,” she said on a whine.
“Aww, jeez. I’m sorry. But I’m sure you’ll be back to your old self in no time.”
“Yeah.”
“Well, at least I don’t feel as bad telling you I have to be out of town this weekend.”
“But…but…” A huge pause followed. “You said we could have PF Chang’s. You promised!”
He couldn’t help it. He burst out laughing. “Honey, if you could eat Chinese food anytime soon, I’d make a point to stay home. Don’t pick a fight just to have an argument. I’ll take you out for dinner as soon as I get back. I promise. I’ll even bring you back a surprise.”
She remained silent, a deliberate, guilt-inducing silence.
“I’ll call you and see how you’re feeling, okay?” Not expecting a reply, he added, “Be good and remember when you start to eat, do it in small doses and do it smart.”
More silence followed. The kid had made guilt into an art form, Riley thought. “Feel better, baby.”
“I’m not a baby,” she muttered.
Maybe not but he’d gotten a reply out of her, which had been his goal. He chuckled and heard the click in his ear, indicating she’d hung up.
“You spoil her,” Lisa said just as he’d been about to put down the phone.
“I didn’t realize you’d stayed on the extension.”
“Let’s just say I was curious how you’d handle her.”
A quick glance at the clock told him he had to get moving or risk missing his flight, but he couldn’t let this pass. “I don’t need you eavesdropping on me,” he said through gritted teeth.
“If you upset her, she’s just going to take it out on Ted and me,” she said.
Ted had been Elizabeth’s stepfather for the last seven years. For someone who wasn’t interested in sports, he was a nice enough guy. Unfortunately he also had a kid from a prior marriage and he was much stricter than Riley. He didn’t approve of the gifts and extras Riley bought his daughter, which probably explained Lisa’s listening in. But it didn’t excuse it.
“I’ve got to run, but do me a favor? Have some faith in me or soon we’ll be at each other’s throats.”
Lisa cleared her throat. “I’m sorry I listened in. But—”
“I’ve got to go.”
“Just one more quick thing. Do not bring her home any expensive gifts from this trip,” Lisa said.
He rolled his eyes. “Bye.” He chose to ignore her warning. Elizabeth was his daughter and he’d buy her anything he damn well pleased.
CHAPTER THREE
SOPHIE’S HEAD POUNDED as she exited the cab at the airport. The pain in her temple had nothing to do with Spencer and everything to do with her traveling companion.
She had enough on her mind without having to deal with the constant distraction Riley would provide and she’d called him in a last-minute attempt to discourage him from joining her, but the man insisted on being there the minute she found his father. Assuming she even tracked Spencer down. Sophie had her doubts.
She’d tossed and turned all night, sleepless over the thought of being so close to Riley on the flight and on their trip. She was too attracted to him for it to be healthy, Sophie thought.
Athletes, she thought with frustration. She’d avoided dating them for years, leaving the bold, brash kind of guy for Annabelle, who’d always known how to handle them. Riley Nash had a string of women following him everywhere he went and unlike Annabelle, Sophie wouldn’t know how to compete.
As the middle sibling, she created her own sense of order and followed a path she herself dictated. She could attract a man’s attention and hold it, but she’d only do that for the right sort of man. A man she could understand and control. Accountants, executives, people who understood schedules and did the expected. Riley was the lone bullet in Russian roulette. She never knew when to expect him to hit or what would happen when he did.
She glanced at her watch once more. Just because she didn’t see him now didn’t mean he wasn’t here. They’d agreed to meet at the gate. Sophie passed through security quickly and easily. She had the routine down pat. She wore slip-on shoes, no belt or heavy jewelry