this is awkward for me, for us. They don’t want to make you any more uncomfortable than you already are.”
No matter what anyone did or didn’t do, it was still uncomfortable. She didn’t know what to say in response. She desperately wanted to do something to make this better, though.
“Come on,” he said, breaking the silence before she could. “Let’s go get some food and see what the kids are doing.”
Thankful for the distraction, she followed him out into the kitchen, vaguely aware he was trying to keep the sarcasm and anger out of his voice. Since their moment in the kitchen, he’d been trying a lot harder to treat her with some sense of compassion, or at least with a little less hostility.
When they walked into the room, Mitch and Simone were working in the kitchen together, getting hamburger fixings ready to go, while Julia and Shannon set out chips and condiments. The girls had already struck up a fierce friendship. Reed just ran around getting in the way, like he was a regular fixture in the group. They looked normal. Like two families hanging out for a backyard barbecue.
It was only when you looked closer you saw it was just one giant mess.
The flickering lights of the TV in the corner of the room caught Kate’s attention. No one seemed to be noticing it, so she moved to turn it off, but her hand paused on the power button when the reporter mention Ryan’s name. Then her face flashed on the screen. And she sucked in a gasp.
Ryan stepped up next to her. The reporter was standing outside Ryan’s downtown office building.
“Channel Two News has recently learned that pharmaceutical giant Ryan Harrison, whose wife died aboard U.S. Airlines flight 1466 which crashed shortly after takeoff from San Francisco five years ago, received shocking news earlier this week. His wife may still be alive.
“Sources confirm this woman, Kate Alexander, agreed to undergo DNA testing to verify suspicions she is Harrison’s estranged wife. A source close to Ms. Alexander also confirms she suffers from a rare form of amnesia, which has blocked out virtually all of her long-term memory, making this discovery even more amazing.
“Harrison, shown here in video from the Governor’s Ball last winter, and his lawyers are not commenting at this time, but sources do tell us it is highly likely Ms. Alexander is in fact Anne Harrison. Ryan Harrison, CEO of AmCorp Pharmaceuticals, has very rarely spoken publicly about his deceased wife. His company has been involved in several questionable take-over mergers lately…”
“Fucking press.” Ryan flipped off the TV and headed for Mitch’s office.
Kate sank down onto the couch and covered her face. With trembling fingers she tried to rub away the headache already pounding away at her brain. As if things weren’t bad enough, now the story was all over the news.
Simone ushered the kids outside and sat next to her. Mitch followed Ryan into the office.
“Talk to me, Counselor,” Kate said.
“Well, I want to hear what Ryan’s PR people have to say, but I’m thinking you’re both going to have to make a public statement. It’s the only way we’re going to get the press off your backs. Odds are good they’re at your house right now, and at Ryan’s. I think you lucked out today by being here. As of yet, they haven’t found you, but they will.”
“Fabulous.”
She pushed off the couch and walked into Mitch’s office. Ryan was pacing with the phone pressed to his ear. Mitch stood in the corner of the room listening, his hands on his hips.
A chill spread over Kate. Ryan had definitely been frustrated and angry with her before, but this was different. His voice was icy, his face hard and rigid, and whomever he was talking to—and she assumed it was one of his lawyers—was taking the brunt of his fury.
“I don’t give a damn what they want,” he said into the phone. “My personal life is my own fucking business. I’ve never commented on it before. I’m sure as hell not going to start now.”
Kate listened to his end of the conversation, not feeling any better judging by the number of times Ryan swore. When he was done, he tossed the cordless phone on the desk, dropped into Mitch’s leather chair, leaned his head back, and closed his eyes. “What do you want to do?”
The question was meant for her. Kate looked to Simone, then back at Ryan’s hard face. “If we ignore it?”