Four o’clock Monday morning, Wyatt had just emerged from the shower to run a towel over his chest when Esther cried.
He tossed the towel around his neck, stepped into a pair of boxers, then jogged down the hall to take her from her crib. Natalie usually tackled her late-night feedings, but that was around two. He checked her diaper. Loaded.
“Just had to leave me a present before I left, huh?”
In the glow of her Winnie-the-Pooh night-light, Esther cooed on the changing table.
“Wanna know a secret?” he whispered past the knot in his throat. Now an expert with diapers, he unsnapped her onesie and just as efficiently disposed of her dirty diaper and cleaned her mess. “I like to pretend I don’t like you—would never want a baby like you for my own—but I’d be lying.”
With her lotioned and powdered, he tugged her pj’s back down, snapping them snug.
Cradling her, he headed into the adjoining bathroom to wash his hands, then sat in the nursery rocker. “I’m leaving, you know? Before your mom and dad’s accident, I thought I knew what I wanted—to run as far from here as I could possibly get. Now, I’m not so sure. I mean, I think I am, but then I see Nat holding you, or playing with Mabel or the twins and I freak. She’s beautiful. Not like a model, or that tall Russian I dated last Christmas, but different. This is going to sound crazy, but sometimes I get the feeling her serenity is contagious. It makes me want to emulate her—which is really nutso, because I’m not a nurturing, serene kind of guy.”
He took a sideways peek at Esther to find she’d fallen asleep with her thumb in her mouth.
“This a sign I’ve lost my touch with the ladies?” he teased.
After gently returning her to her crib, for the longest time he stared at the way moonlight kissed her chubby cheeks. Since helping care for Dallas and Josie’s crew, he’d stopped dwelling on what he could never have to instead realize what he did. Being a fantastic uncle wouldn’t kill him. Instead, he’d have the best of both the family and bachelor worlds. Only, the more he was around Natalie, the more he wondered if maybe his old dating days were no longer for him, either.
The clock was ticking.
He needed to finish packing. Make sure he had his passport and entry visa and a dozen other international travel necessities. He needed to shave and dress and confirm his flight. He needed to do all of that and more, but what did he do? Sit back down in the nursery rocker and watch moonlight fade to sun.
“WYATT?” DRESSED IN HER nightgown, thick socks and a cap of wild hair, Natalie didn’t trust her eyes. “You should be in Dallas by now.”
“Yep.”
“So why aren’t you?” Almost afraid of his answer, she turned her back on him, instead focusing on Esther.
“Couldn’t do it. Didn’t feel right.”
“But why?” Facing him, she prayed he couldn’t see the relief in her eyes. The moment she’d placed her feet on the floor from the bed, she’d fought a lead weight pressing on her chest. Dread. Regret—for things she had said and hadn’t. On some levels, they barely knew each other. On others, she’d always known him. He was as much a part of her as Weed Gulch itself. “I—I hope not because you think I can’t cope, because I can. I just—”
Before she could finish her thought, he was on his feet, kissing her. And she let him. Oh, she let him. They kissed and kissed until Esther whimpered and grunted and— “Look!”
Right under their noses, Esther had turned herself over. Judging by her smile, was quite proud of her accomplishment.
“Holy crap,” Wyatt said, tickling her tummy. “We have a prodigy on our hands.”
Just like that, the questions she had for him were put to the back burner in favor of Esther’s amazing skills. If it was this exciting watching her best friend’s baby reach a milestone, how fun would it be oohing and aahing over her own?
How sad was it Wyatt would never have that chance?
THURSDAY NIGHT AT THE twins’ school Christmas program, Wyatt asked Natalie, “Was it wrong for me to have strong-armed a granny to get these seats?”
“I’d have done the same.” With Esther in her carrier, Natalie aimed her camera at the stage. The auditorium had been decorated top to bottom in red and green construction paper cutouts. Stars and reindeer and candy canes had been mangled together to form a backdrop. Before his stint as a temporary dad, Wyatt would’ve thought it ridiculous. Now that he knew just how much work kids like his nieces had put into the decor, he appreciated it for the fine art it was. He could only imagine how proud Dallas and Josie must be attending an event like this.
Mabel stood on his thighs, the heels of her tiny black patent dress shoes digging in. She was excited about seeing her “sissies” perform, which in her behavior manifested in much jumping and humming and lots of slobbery cheek kissing. “I wuv Unk Wy-att!”
He kissed her right back. “Love you, too, cutie.”
“Mabel,” Natalie said, “did you see the whole table filled with cookies we get to eat after the show?”
“Cookie! Cookie!” Jump, jump. Wyatt winced through the toddler’s latest squeals.
The show began, and along with it, more emotional conflict than Wyatt was prepared to handle. All the kids were cute, but Bonnie and Betsy were off the charts. Through song after song, his mind drifted to the possibilities that would never be his. He would never sit in an audience, chest swelled with pride like the hundreds of parents around him. Odds were, he’d never even marry.
Surrounded by families and holiday cheer, he didn’t just feel alone, but adrift.
Lord willing, he had fifty or so years left of life, but what would that time be filled with? Work? Meaningless hookups? Being the third wheel at every Buckhorn event? In giving up his Ethiopian gig, he’d been so sure he was making the right decision. Now, he wasn’t.
Eyes stinging, he was glad for the dark. Glad for the distraction of children singing over the growing sadness in his soul.
Natalie leaned close, whispering in his ear, “You okay?”
He nodded.
Hell no, he wasn’t anywhere near okay. But his problems were his own, and not for Natalie’s consumption.
By the time the show ended and the cookie and punch reception began, Wyatt pulled himself together. Tried focusing on the downside of kids. They were noisy and sticky and ran around screaming like atoms—not that he even knew if an atom made noise, but if it did, it had to be akin to hyper munchkins. So even knowing all of that, why was he still dissatisfied? As if everyone had been invited to join an exclusive club but him?
“All right,” Natalie parked in front of him with a plastic cup of punch in one hand and a cookie in her other, “out with it. Why are you scowling? I’m sure there are a few hot single moms you could be hitting on.”
A month earlier, Wyatt might’ve been tempted to cash in on that offer, but oddly enough, the only woman he was even remotely attracted to was Natalie. He’d grown fond of being around her. After their hospital visit Saturday, she’d remained strong while he’d been the one falling apart.
“Don’t quote me on this,” he said, striving for a teasing tone, “but I’m kind of crushing on you.”
“Liar.” Munching her cookie, she added, “You’re just saying that to get out of giving Mabel her bath.”
The little devil in question stood alongside her sisters, face wreathed in chocolate and red icing.
“You got me.” Wyatt clutched his chest, glad for the opportunity she’d unwittingly handed him to make light of his comment. What would she have said had she believed him? Might she have kissed him right here in front of God and all of Weed Gulch? “Where’s Esther?”
Natalie nodded toward her friend Cami. The school secretary jiggled the grinning baby for a circle of cooing teachers. “She’s a hot commodity.”
“Excited for the day you’re showing off your son?”
“Funny…” She finished her punch. “I haven’t thought that far ahead. Right now, the logistics have me stymied.”
“Like what? Anything I can do to help?”
“If you have a hankering to learn Lamaze. Or assemble the nursery furniture I have yet to buy. Or shop for diapers and onesies and—”
“Whoa.” Hands on her shoulders, Wyatt gave her a comforting squeeze. “You still have a few months till the baby gets here, right?”
She nodded.
“All right, well, surely to God Josie will be home by then, and if she’s not, your friend Cami would probably tackle Lamaze. As for the rest of it, just like the family has done for Christmas gifts—shop online. Once the stuff gets here, we can assemble after the kids are in bed.”
“You’d do that for me?”
I’d do anything for you. The moment the thought popped in Wyatt’s head, he knew to back off. That is, his head knew. As for his pulse… It raced full speed ahead.
“THANK YOU.” IMMEDIATELY after opening her latest gift—a classroom decorating book from Natalie—Josie yawned. Still on morphine, it was plainly a struggle for her to remain awake.
“Dallas,” Natalie said with forced Christmas cheer, “you’re next.” He nodded. Whereas Josie’s head trauma issues had lessened to headaches, Dallas still had serious obstacles. His doctor said he’d make a full recovery, but for now, in addition to other problems, his speech was slurred. Dallas being Dallas, this frustrated him, which only exacerbated the situation and made him grumpy.
Georgina hustled to his side, helping him open a new fishing rod.
“Just had my lake stocked,” Luke said. “By spring, I’ll expect you to be out there with me.”
Though the patients had been moved to a more homey long-term care facility, the fact remained that they were still celebrating Christmas in a sterile environment rather than at home. The tree Daisy had assembled was a crooked fake and because of Dallas’s sensitivity to light, the only decorations were a few country-themed ornaments.
“I don’t like it here,” Bonnie announced midway through the next round of gifts. “It smells funny.”
“Hush!” Georgina admonished. “With all your parents have been through, the last thing they need is to hear you complaining.”
The girl’s lower lip trembled in advance of full-blown tears. To her grandmother, she shouted, “You’re mean!”
When Bonnie left the room, Betsy and Natalie followed.
“Hey,” Natalie said, finally catching up with the runaway midway down the hall. Squeezing her in a hug, she barely held off her own waterworks. “Sweetheart, I know this is hard, but as much as you miss your mom and dad, they miss you. Seeing you helps them feel better.”
“D-Daddy’s weird,” Betsy said, “and Mommy’s always sleeping. And it does smell funny in there.”
“I know.” Natalie hugged them both. “But I promise everything will go back to normal soon. Your mom and dad and grandma will come home. Uncle Wyatt and I will go back to our own houses. Shoot, I’ll bet by Valentine’s Day, you’ll forget any of this even happened.”
“Really?” Bonnie asked, gazing up at Natalie through her big, blue eyes.
Nodding, Natalie said, “And until then, I need you to help with the little kids.”
“I’ll help,” Betsy said.
“Me, too.” Wyatt startled Natalie by joining their group hug. “It’s going to take a lot of work to get Mabel to stop eating Play-Doh.”
Bonnie giggled and sniffled. “She doesn’t do that anymore.”
“Does, too,” Betsy said. “Kitty does, too. Then his poop’s all blue and pink.”
“Mmm, delightful.” Natalie forced a smile. That answered her questions about the funky litter box contents.
“Quite a family we’ve got here, huh?” Natalie knew Wyatt had meant his words as a joke, but the knot in her throat told a different story. That, yes, in only a month, they had formed a family. Loud and messy and far from perfect, but a family all the same.
BARE FEET PROPPED ON THE coffee table, Wyatt asked Natalie, “Am I a bad person for feeling grateful Christmas is almost over?”
She laughed. “I was just thinking the same, so guess we’ll be bad together.”
“I like the sound of that.” With a playful growl, he tugged her closer to his spot on the sofa. Aside from dancing firelight, the tree’s colorful glow provided the room’s only other illumination. There was no music. No TV. No crying or fighting kids. The pine tree’s fresh scent provided a welcome change from the stuffy hospital. “You look pretty.”
“You need glasses.”
“Don’t,” he said, tucking flyaway hair behind her ears.
“What?”
“Berate yourself. You’re a beautiful woman.” Not trusting himself to behave, he satisfied his craving to kiss her with a chaste peck to her forehead.
“Thank you.” Looking down, then up, she said, “Gotta say, you’re kind of a beautiful man.”
“I usually strive for handsome, but after the day we’ve had,” he teased, “I’ll take what I can get.”
After an eye roll, she rested her head against his shoulder. He liked having her lean on him for support.
“Ooh.” She clutched her belly.
“Baby kick?”
“Apparently, he’s not happy with what Santa brought for Christmas.” Wincing, she said, “There he goes again.”
Easing off the sofa and onto his knees in front of her, he lifted her red sweater only to encounter a white tank. He slid that up and the waistband of her maternity jeans down. When Wyatt bracketed her baby, kissing the spot where the little guy again visibly moved, he heard Natalie’s swift intake of breath.
Not sure if that was good or bad, he kissed her again. And again. And then clothes got in his way.
Turning his attention to her lips, he kissed her until she groaned. Until she raked her fingers through the hair at the back of his head, urging him closer and deeper and driving him crazy with sexy mewing sounds.
“I want you so bad,” he said on a brief break for air.
Nodding, she said, “Likewise, but remember? We promised each other no more of this?”
“But it’s Christmas,” he reasoned.
She stole another deep kiss and murmured, “Maybe we could go a little further. Like you taking off your shirt.”
“Me?” Rocking back on his heels, he said, “I was thinking more along the lines of you. I swear your girls grow a cup size every day.”
Her playful swat only encouraged him.
And then they both undressed each other, kissing and caressing and speaking through lingering touches and glances and breathy sighs.
“I want to make love to you,” he said, sweeping the backs of his fingers down the sides of her full breasts. She shivered—not from cold, but sensation.
She nodded, then shook her head. “We can’t. I’m sorry. We just can’t.” Gathering her sweater and tank, she clutched them to her, rising from the sofa only to hurry up the stairs.
IN HER ROOM, NATALIE shut the door, leaning against it. The cold wood bit her bare back, reminding her just how close she and Wyatt had come to making love. For a woman determined to steer clear of all men—especially Wyatt—how was it that each day she grew closer to the one man above all she knew lacked a commitment gene. Sure, he might’ve backed out on his African adventure, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have another trip already planned.
In bed, she tossed and turned, alternately hoping Wyatt would come to her and praying he didn’t.
When she woke in the morning to cold rain beating her windows, the empty side of her bed equally as chilly, she knew her prayer had come true. But she wasn’t the least bit happy about it.
Then it dawned on her that for the first time since she’d started serving as a substitute mom for Josie, she’d slept through the night. She’d been so ashamed of her own actions with Wyatt that she’d run off without the baby monitor she’d left on the coffee table.
Bolting from bed, she ran to the nursery, fully expecting to find poor Esther soaked and screaming from hunger.
Instead, she found the baby’s crib empty.
Racing down the hall and back staircase, she reached the kitchen only to freeze on the bottom step. The twins and Mabel sat at the kitchen table, eating scrambled eggs. Esther grinned in Wyatt’s arms as he teased her with a teething ring.
“Good morning.” He glanced up, making her pulse race from not only his gorgeous smile, but the charming scene.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” She circled the table with kisses for all the girls.
“We’re letting you rest!” Betsy hopped up to pull out the empty chair alongside her. In the process, three of the crayons she’d been using rolled onto the floor. “I made you a picture!” The scene she proudly displayed left a sentimental knot in Natalie’s throat. “It’s us four girls and you and Uncle Wyatt. We’re a family!”
“And look!” Bonnie was also up, but she ran to the counter. “Us and Uncle Wyatt made you stuff to eat with lots of cheese!”
“Thank you.” As Bonnie set a simple plate of eggs, bacon, strawberries and biscuits in front of her, Natalie was overcome with emotion.
“Here’s honey for your biscuit.” Betsy took the honey bear from Mabel to set it in front of Natalie.
Mabel screamed.
Natalie grimaced, making quick work of splitting her baked goods and drizzling them with honey. “This is so sweet of all of you,” she said once Mabel had custody of her bear again. “Especially you.” Gaze locked with Wyatt’s, she feared all the air had vanished from the room. Just looking at him made her pulse quicken. Remembering what they’d almost shared made her cheeks flush.
“You’re welcome,” he said with a flirty wink. “You had a late night. Thought you and your baby could use the rest.”
She shot him a scowl. “Had you left out the wink, I wouldn’t now suspect your motive.”
“How did we get from cheesy eggs to motive?”
His meal was too delicious to waste arguing. “Let’s just say if you think wooing me through my stomach will produce results different from those we shared last night, you’d be wrong.”
Eyebrows raised, he asked, “What if all I want are the same results?”
“You’re incorrigible.” The heat pouring from her cheeks rivaled the bacon’s sizzle.
“Yep.” He shifted a now dozing Esther to his other shoulder. The sight of the baby lying safe in Wyatt’s big, strong arms was mesmerizing. Natalie couldn’t get over his transformation from professional bachelor to temporary dad. Esther’s current contentment level meant he’d even managed a late-night feeding and changing her diaper. “That’s part of my charm.”
Bonnie asked, “What are you guys talking about?”
“And why are you looking all funny at each other?” Betsy wanted to know.
Mabel upended the honey bear and sucked the contents straight into her sticky mouth.
“I DON’T WANNA HAIRCUT!” The day before New Year’s Eve, Bonnie wriggled and bucked in the beautician’s chair.
“She doesn’t like getting her hair cut.” Betsy sat prim and proper for her hair dresser.
Mabel sat with Wyatt and Esther in the waiting area. Apprehension showed in her tightly folded arms and frown. Wyatt had tried reading to her, but she was too concerned about her sister to pay attention to a dancing bear.
“Bonnie, please,” Natalie reasoned. “Your grandma told me that your mom and dad will be home soon. When they do get back, do you want to look like a shaggy hair monster?”
“Yeah,” Betsy said. “Don’t you wanna be a movie star like me?”
Bonnie stuck out her tongue.
Holding Esther to him with his right arm, Wyatt took Mabel by his left. “Come on, squirt. Let’s see how bad this is really going to be.”
“No cut!” Mabel said, refusing to budge.
“What if I get my hair cut first?” he asked.
She answered with an angry shake of her head.
Grunting from the girl’s surprising weight, he hefted her up, as well. “Noooooooo!”
“She’s such a baby,” Bonnie said with disdain.
To Bonnie, he said, “How about straightening up and telling your little sister getting her hair cut is no big deal.”
“Is so,” Bonnie insisted.
“Look at me, Mabel.” Betsy made a few supermodel poses. “I loooove going to the beauty parlor.”
“Me, too,” Natalie said.
Wyatt asked, “When’s the last time you treated yourself to a fancy new ’do?”
“Can’t remember.” Facing the mirror, she asked, “Are you hinting I need womanly maintenance?”
“Not at all. Just thinking you might be the perfect person to show Mabel, here, that getting gussied up for her daddy is a good thing.”
“Don’t do it, Miss Nat,” Bonnie said with a shake of her head.
“Stay still,” her beautician requested. “If you don’t, I may cut you.”
“See?” Bonnie said. “This is super dangerous.”
Sighing, Natalie asked the receptionist, “Does anyone have room on their schedule for me?”
They did and she proved a good sport. After Natalie’s hair was washed, she welcomed Mabel onto her lap. As the stylist worked scissors around Natalie’s head, the little girl stared into the mirror with rapt interest.
Betsy asked Wyatt, “How come you’re not getting your hair cut?”
He gave Esther a jiggle. “I like mine rugged.”
“That’s not fair,” Natalie said.
Bonnie had refused to have her dripping hair styled and sat in the reception area pouting.
“Yeah, Uncle Wyatt!” Betsy was having her hair blown dry. “If you had handsome hair, maybe you and Miss Nat could go on a date!”
“You think?”
His niece and her stylist nodded.
“Ask her,” Betsy urged, “ask her!”
“Miss Nat,” he said in front of her chair, ignoring her blazing cheeks. He knew he was playing with fire, but with the sun shining and his brother and sister-in-law making great progress, Wyatt was in the mood to throw caution into a campfire. “What do you think? Would an act as dramatic as me getting a haircut convince you to go on an official date?”
Her frown was almost as big as Bonnie’s. “I thought we weren’t going to go there.”
“Hmm,” Natalie’s stylist said, “from the sound of that I’m guessing you two have already dabbled in romance?”
“No,” Natalie said.
“Not really,” Wyatt said.
Bonnie chimed in with, “Uncle Wyatt put his hands on Miss Nat’s butt!”