The Christmas Baby (5 page)

She smiled. “An unqualified success. Both Will and Lily had a wonderful time. The people were great. It seems like a good program.”

“I figured it would be since Gail vouched for it. She said both she and her sister—Mark’s wife, Cat—have taken their kids there. In fact, Mark said his daughter Miranda was there today, although I didn’t see her.”

He took another bite of apple and chewed. “So what did you do today on your first day of freedom?”

“Oh, this and that. I hired a housekeeper.” No way could she tell him what else she’d done. It would sound pathetic, and that was the last way she wanted to appear to Brian.

“That’s good.” He didn’t say anything else but she felt him staring at her. Heat rose in her face. Surely she didn’t look that different, did she?

“What happened to your glasses?”

“I got contacts.” That was the first thing she’d done. She’d been wanting them for some time but couldn’t justify spending the money until now. “Why, do I look funny? I feel a little odd without my glasses.”

“No. Your eyes look bigger.” He tilted his head. “You did something to your hair, too.”

She gave Will a bowl of Cheerios and turned to Lily to feed her another bite of peas. “I had it cut. I wanted something easier to manage.” And she’d used a rinse she’d bought at the grocery store to lighten it, but she wasn’t going to tell him that. “I thought men weren’t supposed to notice things like that. Unless they’re gay.”

Brian grinned. “Nope. Purely heterosexual.”

No joke
.

“Your hair is blonder, too. It looks more like your daughter’s now.”

She gave him a dirty look. “Fine, I had a makeover. Sort of. I was tired of looking frumpy. I wanted a change.”

“You didn’t look frumpy.”

She shot him a disbelieving look. “Right.”

“Do you have a date? Is that what this is about?”

“Of course I don’t have a date.” When had she had time to find someone to date? “I just wanted a change. Can we talk about something else now?”

She picked up Will’s food and then wiped his face, though it didn’t do a lot of good. “That’s right, sweetheart. We’ll go have a bath in just a minute.”

“I’ll do it. And then I’ll put him to bed.”

Faith stared at him. What had gotten into him? He’d never volunteered for bedtime duty before. “Brian, that’s part of my job.”

“Doesn’t mean you have to do it every night. If you’re worried I don’t know how, I did it before you came to work for me.”

He had that stubborn look, so she knew his mind was made up. “I realize that. That’s not what I was worried about.”

He raised an eyebrow. “We’ve already discussed your nonpoker face.”

She laughed. “All right. If you’re sure, I’ll finish up with Lily and put her to bed, then I’ll see what I can come up with for dinner.”

“Sounds like a deal.”

“Call me if you need me,” she said.

He lifted Will out of his high chair. “We’ll be fine. But thanks.”

Maybe she should date, she thought as she took Lily to her room. That might keep her mind off her very appealing boss. Unfortunately, single men were hard to come by in Aransas City. And those she’d met just didn’t interest her.

Except the one who was off-limits.

“W
HAT
’
S WITH ALL
the food?” Brian asked when he came home the next day after having been in Corpus Christi with a prospective client. “I came in through the kitchen and it looks like you had a cooking marathon. Or raided a bakery.”

Faith was seated cross-legged on the floor in the den with both babies. Will sat in her lap tugging on her hair as she tried to play patty-cake with him; Lily lay on a pallet on her stomach playing with one of those interactive toys that made all sorts of sounds. He’d almost grown used to the noise level of the kids being awake.

Faith looked up at him, laughing, and it struck him as it had the day before how pretty she was. In a wholesome sort of way. But on Faith wholesome looked good. Damn good. Brian wasn’t sure he approved of this new Faith. He needed plain, not pretty.

“There’s more in the refrigerator. We need to decide what you want to eat right away and what to freeze. But I didn’t cook any of it.” She straightened her mouth but her dimples still peeked out. “The casserole ladies have discovered you.”

Yeah, way too pretty. “What’s a casserole lady?”

“You know, whenever a man is widowed or a new single man comes to town, they bake for him. A friend of mine calls them casserole ladies.”

“All that stuff is from women?” The countertop was covered with food. Cakes, cookies, pies. He’d thought Faith had lost it.

“Every blessed thing. It was Mothers’ Day Out that did it. Now they all know you’re single and have an absolutely adorable son.” She laughed again when Will made a raspberry sound. “That’s right, sweetheart.” She ruffled his hair. “You are one adorable baby.”

“I don’t get it. Most of those women are married.” Brian sat beside her, then stretched out on his side and propped himself up on his elbow to get comfortable.

Faith put Will down and he promptly crawled over to the toy Lily had been playing with and started banging it on the floor. Faith propped Lily up against a pillow and gave her a toy, which she threw down immediately.

“Most of the women who use the Mothers’ Day Out program are married, but not all of them. And the ones who are married have single sisters, cousins and friends. So you’d better brace yourself.” She paused and added, “But you probably don’t mind, do you?”

He shrugged and said, “Depends on what they look like. Were any of them hot?”

He looked at her from beneath his lashes as he handed Lily the toy she’d tossed away.

Faith’s jaw literally dropped. “Brian! I can’t believe you said that. That’s so shallow.”

He laughed. “You should have seen your face.”

“Men are so predictable.”

“It’s one of our charms.”

Lily flung the toy he’d just given her, squealing as she did so. He picked it up and handed it back to her.

“Now you’ve done it,” Faith warned. “She’ll have you doing that a thousand times. She never tires of that game.”

She threw it away once again and had him smiling. She was a beautiful baby, very fair, with big, blue eyes. “Wonder why she didn’t get your brown eyes?” he said aloud.

“She has her father’s eyes.”

Lily toppled over and started to cry. He helped her sit up again and was rewarded with a grin. It depressed him sometimes that Lily seemed to like him more than Will did. “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“Oh, it’s a good thing. He’s attractive, even if he is a jerk.”

“Do you miss him?”

She’d been watching Will make faces at himself in the mirror but at that, she looked at Brian. “No. At first I did, but it didn’t take me long to realize that a man who would desert his pregnant girlfriend and unborn child like he did wasn’t worth it.”

“True.” But somehow he didn’t think she’d gotten over the guy as easily as she’d like him to believe. “Have you had a date since Lily was born?”

Faith laughed. “I’m a single mother. Who has time to date?”

Brian didn’t answer, just raised an eyebrow.

“I’m not hung up on him, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“I didn’t say you were.” Even if he did suspect that to be the case.

“You don’t believe me, do you?”

Brian shrugged. “It’s none of my business. I didn’t mean for you to get bent out of shape. It was just a question.”

“I’m not bent out of shape. But now you answer a question for me. Have you had a date since you took custody of Will?” She picked up Lily and cuddled her.

“No.” Will crawled over to him and sat, looking at him solemnly before he started chanting syllables. Sometimes he strung them together, but he didn’t make a lot of sense yet. He’d been saying “Mama,” though, since the day Brian had picked him up from Kara Long.

“Why not?”

“I just haven’t had time for women.” Which wasn’t quite true. He could have made time if he’d wanted. Maybe he should now that his life had settled down a bit.

Faith looked at him as if to say she’d made her point, then got up with Lily in her arms. “It’s time for the babies’ dinner. Why don’t you bring Will into the kitchen and we’ll feed them.”

He let the change of subject pass and followed her with Will on his hip.

Faith put Lily in her high chair and Brian did the same with Will. He was actually starting to feel more comfortable doing the daily stuff that having a baby involved. It still astounded him that he had a son, but not nearly as much as it had at first.

Faith went to the refrigerator and started pulling out baby food. “Since Lily was born I’ve been struggling to support us, so I haven’t had a lot of time for men. And, frankly, they hardly seem worth the trouble after my last experience. I’m not hung up on Lily’s father. I just have no use for men right now.”

“Not all men are like him.” What a waste that she thought men were too much trouble.

Faith snorted. “Right. It doesn’t matter anyway. Even if someone asked me out, who would stay with Lily?”

He ought to be glad she hadn’t started dating. He didn’t want her to fall for some guy, get serious about him and quit her job, did he? On the other hand, if Faith was dating someone—anyone—then maybe he’d quit wondering about what it would be like to kiss her. Because the past two days he’d found himself fantasizing about that far more often than he should.

It would be a monumental mistake. If flirting with the nanny was a no-no, then kissing her was definitely out.
He
was the one who needed a date.

“You could ask Roxy,” he said, referring to one of Jay and Gail’s daughters. “She’s almost thirteen, and if I was here with Will, I’m sure they’d let her take care of Lily. She helps out with Jason all the time, so I know she’s good with babies. Both their girls are.”

“You’re very annoying sometimes.” Faith handed him a bowl of finger food to give to Will, then sat down to feed Lily.

“You’re just annoyed because I have a point.”

“Fine, if someone asks me out, I’ll think about it. Satisfied?”

Not really. He was afraid nothing was really going to satisfy him until he kissed Faith. And that was so not going to happen.

F
AITH KNEW
she shouldn’t have been surprised when two days after their conversation about dating and moving on, Brian called her and said not to bother fixing dinner for him because he had a date. She certainly had no business wondering who he was with and how that date was going. She’d practically thrown him into the waiting casserole ladies’ arms, after all.

Besides that, he was so obviously not interested in Faith. Why else would he have pushed her to start dating again? He felt sorry for her. Probably thought she couldn’t get a date. Well, she wasn’t going to sit around like a pathetic lump mooning over her boss. She picked up the phone and called Gail. Since Faith had begun working for Brian, she and Gail had become good friends.

They chatted a bit and then Faith came straight to the point. “Did you mean it about fixing me up with a friend of yours?”

“Of course. But what changed your mind? Last time I mentioned it, you were totally against going on a blind date.”

“I just wasn’t ready then. I am now. But I need to ask a favor. I’ll make sure Brian can take care of Will whatever night it is, but do you think Roxy could watch Lily for me? Brian mentioned she helps you and I thought—”

Gail interrupted. “That’s a great idea. Roxy loves babies and she’s wonderful with Jason. I won’t let her babysit alone yet, but with Brian there, she’ll be fine. I’m so glad you changed your mind.”

Faith wasn’t sure she was, but she’d taken that first step so she might as well go through with it.

“He’s a great guy, Faith,” Gail continued enthusiastically. “I know you two will get along. His name is Allen Carver. He’s a doctor, someone Jay knows, actually, who lives in Corpus Christi. I’ll give him your number as soon as we get off the phone.”

“Thanks.” They talked a little more, then hung up. The phone rang a few minutes later and, sure enough, it was her blind date. Gail must have called him immediately, she decided, then wondered what exactly her friend had said about her to have the guy contacting her so quickly. She agreed to go to dinner the next evening, though she warned him she might have to reschedule if it didn’t fit in with her boss’s plans.

Faith took out her contacts and put on her sweats. After checking on the children, who were both sleeping soundly, she settled down in the den to watch a romantic comedy on TV and pretend she wasn’t waiting up for Brian.

A
S
B
RIAN LET HIMSELF IN
the back door, he realized he couldn’t remember the last time he’d gotten home from a date by ten o’clock. At least he’d been the one to cut out early. Corinna had been perfectly willing to make a night of it. At her apartment, yet. She’d reminded him how much fun they’d had the last time he’d seen her. But tonight she just hadn’t interested him. She was gorgeous, he’d grant her that. But he didn’t believe she had two thoughts in her head. Worse, she agreed with everything he said and seemed to have no opinions of her own. Boring with a capital
B.

Since when do you care about a woman’s brains?
he asked himself. Especially a woman who was built like Corinna.

He’d changed, he realized. He wanted something more than what he’d been content with in the past. But there were plenty of women to date, after all. Next time he’d be a little more discerning. Someone not only beautiful, but someone who could carry on a decent conversation, as well.

As he walked down the hallway going to his bedroom, he noticed the lights and TV were on in the den. Faith was on the couch, fast asleep.

He stopped for a minute and looked at her. Her glasses had slipped down her nose and her head rested on her arm. As he stood watching, her lips curved into a surprisingly wicked grin. He wished he knew what she was dreaming about.

If he left her there, she’d be cramped and cold by morning. Assuming one of the babies didn’t wake up before then, crying for her. He went to check on the kids and found them both sleeping soundly. He went back to the den and leaned down, touching Faith’s shoulder to wake her.

Her eyes blinked open and she smiled. A warm, welcoming smile. “Hi,” she said huskily.

“Hi.” He returned the smile as she snuggled back into the couch and closed her eyes again, obviously still half-asleep. “Don’t you want to go to bed?”

“Hmm.”

He was tempted, very tempted, to run his hand down her arm. He controlled the impulse and spoke more loudly. “Faith, wake up. It’s time to go to bed.”

“Huh?” Her eyes opened, widened. She sat up suddenly, catching him off guard and smashing her head into his nose.

Brian swore, holding his nose as Faith looked around wildly. “What time is it? What’s going on? Are the babies all right?”

He sat down beside her, his hand still covering his throbbing nose. “Calm down, will you? The babies are fine. But I’m not. I think my nose is broken.”

She took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes before putting them back on. “I’m sorry. You startled me.”

“Yeah, I got that.”

She pushed his hand aside. “Let me see.” She pressed gently on the bridge. “It’s not bleeding.”

“I’ll live.” Her lips were full. Close and inviting. Her brown eyes were dark, filled with concern. He started to reach out and run his thumb over those plump, pretty lips until he remembered he had no business running his thumb over anything of Faith’s. Especially not that luscious mouth.

She averted her gaze and shifted away from him. “I can’t believe I fell asleep on the couch. I don’t think I lasted ten minutes into the movie. What time is it?”

“About ten-thirty.”

“You’re home early. Wasn’t your date fun?”

“It was okay. She had to be at work early tomorrow so we called it a night,” he lied. He got up. “I’m beat, I’m going to hit the sack.”

“Me, too. Good night.” She walked to the hallway that led to the bedrooms while Brian stayed in the den. At the doorway, she stopped and looked back at him. “Oh, I forgot. I have a favor to ask you.”

“Sure, what is it?”

“Can you take care of Will tomorrow night? I have a dinner date.”