Wish 01 - A Secret Wish by Barbara Freethy Read Free Book Online Page B

sounds exciting,” John said dryly.
    “He was someone I thought I could count on, and I needed that.”
    “You couldn’t count on him that much – he dumped you.”
    She made a face. “Thanks for the reminder.”
    “Your words, not mine. In my opinion, you might be better off. Now you’re free to find the person who’s right for you.”
    “Yeah, that’s going to be real easy.”
    John gave her a grin that was quickly becoming addictive. She’d never felt so comfortable with a man. She’d never been so honest, and it wasn’t just the champagne. She liked him. He was charming and sexy, smart and quick, and he got her, and that was a heady mix of appealing. She needed to get a grip. He’d be gone in the morning. Tonight was not the start of something. It was just a few hours of fun. She didn’t even know if he was involved with anyone, although she really hoped not. She probably should have asked that question an hour ago. Instead, she asked another. “What about you, John? Have you ever been in love?”
    He hesitated and then said, “Once.”
    “Care to expand?” she prodded.
    “It’s not that good a story. I think we should continue on with your birthday celebration. Hey, this could be your birthday resolution: a night of new experiences.”
    “You’re determined to have me make a resolution, aren’t you?”
    “It seems like a good one to me.”
    It seemed like a good one to her, too. “I’ll go to a club with you, but after that I’m going home.”
    “We’ll see.” He pulled out his wallet and put some money on the table.
    “Let me pay for half,” Liz said, reaching for her purse. Unfortunately, she knocked it off the seat and the contents spilled onto the floor. “Damn,” she muttered. Maybe she should make a resolution to not be so clumsy in the future.
    She slid out of the booth to collect the contents of her purse. John knelt down to help her, and she saw his fingers close around the envelope a second too late. “Give me that,” she said quickly.
    He stared down at the envelope in his hand and then looked at her in surprise. “You know someone in prison?”
    She swallowed hard. “Could I have it, please?”
    He flipped it over. Happy Birthday was written across the back flap. “It’s a birthday card. You haven’t opened it yet.”
    “I’m not going to open it.” She snatched the card from his hand. “Look, we can either go dancing or I can go home, but what we aren’t going to do is talk about this. So what's it going to be?”
    * * *
     
    After leaving the church, Angela felt too restless to go home. Maybe she should have stayed with Patrick, talked to him more about her problems, but what did a priest know about trying to have a baby or working out a compromise with a spouse? Not that there was any way to compromise on the issue. They either tried again or they didn’t. She wished she had someone in her life she could talk to who would be on her side. But all of her supporters had tired of the topic.
    Her sisters continually reminded her that there were worse things in life than not being able to have a baby.
    You should be grateful, Angie. Things could be worse. You could have cancer. You could lose all your money. You could get hit by a car tomorrow. Be happy with what you have.
    She did have a lot of good things in her life, but that didn’t make it easier to face a future without a baby in it. Her sisters had children, families to love and nurture, to watch grow and develop.
    She couldn’t call her mother, either. Her mom would just tell her that she’d waited too long to get started.
    If only you’d listened to me, you wouldn’t be in this predicament, Angela. You wasted the best childbearing years building a career and you waited too long to get your priorities straight.
    And her friends would just offer false platitudes.
    It’s good that it’s just you and Colin. You’ll have money to travel around the world if you want, buy a bigger house, stay up late and