Special Delivery by Danielle Steel Read Free Book Online Page B

perfect opportunity for them to help their children. I don't want to say anything I shouldn't, Jack. But I think she's very upset about not getting pregnant.
    I thought that might be it, he said, looking pensively at Amanda. Have they been trying that seriously? Paul never tells me.
    From what I understand, for two years now. That can be very depressing.
    Or a lot of fun, depending on how you look at it, he said irreverently, and she laughed in spite of herself, and then they both grew serious again.
    They don't look like they're having fun, although she seemed better tonight than she has in a long time. She looked like a little girl when she left to pick up Paul.
    Maybe she was just relieved to see you feeling better, he said gently, and Amanda nodded.
    Maybe. The last I heard of it, she wanted Paul to go to a specialist earlier this year, and he didn't want to.
    That serious then. That's not good news. Do you think he's gone yet?
    I don't think so, although I know she has.
    And?
    I don't know the details, Amanda admitted to him. But I do know they're not pregnant. Or at least I don't think so.
    They would have told us if it had worked by now. It really is a worrisome problem. I've teased him about it from time to time, insensitive moron that I am ' and of course now I realize that I shouldn't have. I wonder if I can broach it with him. He looked pensive.
    I think he worries a lot about his business, Amanda said fairly. She had grown very fond of Paul in the past three years, just as Jack had of her daughter. They were both nice people.
    Paul worries about everything, Jack said with a worried frown. He's just that kind of person, that's why he's good at what he does, and he's going to be a major player in the film industry one day. Unlike his father, who produced some of the worst movies you've ever seen. Surpassed only by the ones in which I acted. I'm a lot better at women's dresses.
    I'm sure you're being modest about the films, Amanda laughed, and then told him how much she liked the store. It's beautiful, Jack. I'll have to come back one afternoon to go shopping. She liked what she had seen there, and much to her surprise, she liked him too. He was intelligent and interesting and fun to be with. The evening had gone very quickly. And as they left the restaurant, he promised her that he would talk to Paul about going to a specialist with Jan.
    He may not appreciate my talking to him about it, but I'll give it a try.
    I'd really appreciate that, she said gratefully as they got back into the limo.
    I'll let you know how it works out, he promised. Just think, if we play our cards right, we might be grandparents again by this time next year. Now, there's a thought. I'm turning sixty right after Christmas. That's bad enough without adding more grandchildren ' for a man like me, that could absolutely destroy my reputation. She liked the way he made light of it, and she couldn't help laughing about it with him, and then for a serious moment, he talked to her again about Dori, how much she had meant to him, and the fact that he had never wanted to be seriously involved with anyone again since then. It's just too painful, he said honestly. I don't want to care that much again about anyone but my children. When the women in my life leave, I want to wave good-bye and forget them. Not cry for two years and remember them for the rest of my life with sorrow. I can't bring myself to do that.
    Maybe the right person hasn't come along again, Jack, she said quietly, thinking of Matthew. She couldn't imagine loving anyone again either, and she said so.
    It's different for you, he said sensibly, you were married for twenty-six years. You haven't been using up your tickets all over the place the way I have. I've just been having fun, and that's all I want. You should have a life with someone else, if that's what you want, after you've looked around for a while, he said gently. You haven't been out here in a long time. You may find you