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Harper paced the baby aisle. She was torn between worry, hurt, shock...actually, she wasn’t sure what she was feeling. How often did a person just get handed a baby and told...good luck!
She snorted. Mason needed help and she was determined to give it. She had always had a natural instinct to help people. It helped Harper feel needed and important and she loved stepping back to see her hard earned results. But right now she was fighting an inner battle.
Mason needs help.
But I’m supposed to be walking away for good.
Helping him means less time for painting.
I wasn’t having much luck anyway. One day won’t be a big deal.
She checked her cart and counted through her list in her head. “Diaper bag, snacks, baby wipes, diapers...” Harper glanced up. “Oh, right. Sippy cups.” She dumped a package in the cart. “Booster seat.” She pushed the cart out into a larger area and grabbed a booster seat for the dining table and then picked out a few outfits that looked about right for Layla. Mason had said she was two, so Harper went with the corresponding size. After a few more things Harper thought might be helpful, including a lovely little teddy bear, she was done.
Heading up to the register, she pulled her heavy cart and continued to fight with herself. “Enough,” she whispered, hoping no one caught her talking to herself. “They need help. You can’t just walk away. Tomorrow you can go right back to work.” With a firm nod, she began loading her purchases onto the conveyor belt.
“If you’ll wait just a minute, we’ll have someone come carry out the crib,” the clerk said.
Harper nodded. “I appreciate it. Thank you.” She stepped to the side and waited until a teenage boy brought out a larger cart to lift the heavy item. With a smile as her greeting, Harper guided him to her vehicle, praying everything would fit.
With a very stuffed and heavy car, Harper drove the hour back to Mason’s house. By the time she pulled into his driveway, Harper had gone from frustration and despair to acceptance and resignation. She could be an adult about this. She could help him get his feet wet in the world of parenting and then walk away, just like she had planned before. It would all turn out just fine.
She grabbed a few bags and marched up to the door before she could chicken out. She set the bags down to knock and then waited...and waited... Harper knocked again before hearing a thud, a cry and a curse. She grimaced. Oops.
“Harper,” Mason said, his jaw dropping in shock. “What are you doing here?”
Harper raised her eyebrows. “I told you I’d be coming back.” She glanced at her watch. “Have you two been sleeping the whole time I was gone?” Slowly, Harper shook her head. “She’ll never sleep tonight if you let her go this late in the day.”
Mason rubbed the back of his neck. “I told you, she doesn’t sleep at night anyway. She only sleeps when I’m holding her.”
“Unless you don’t want to sleep for the next ten years, then you need to set up a routine and schedule,” Harper stated, trying to be kind about it, but he really did need to make some changes.
Mason sighed and nodded. “I know.” He shrugged. “But how?”
She raised her eyebrows. “Can I come in? I brought a bunch of baby stuff with me. Maybe we can get it set up around the house and I’ll try to give you some pointers?”
Mason hesitated, then stepped back. “You already saw that everything’s a wreck,” he said glumly. “But I haven’t been able to keep up, not to mention I’m exhausted.”
Harper gave him an encouraging smile. Exhausted Mason was actually quite adorable, but she could never say that out loud. You’re just helping a friend, she reminded herself. Your competition painting is waiting for you. “Stick with the schedule and in a few days you’ll be feeling better.” She stepped inside. “Though I can’t guarantee complete rest until Layla is out of the house,” Harper teased. “I’ve heard parents never truly sleep again.”
Mason groaned. “I didn’t need to hear that.”
Harper glanced over her shoulder as she set bags down on the coffee table. “Sorry!”
“No, you’re not, but I can’t blame you for laughing.” Mason scrubbed his face. “I’d be doing the same if this happened to someone else.”
Harper’s shoulders drooped. “No, you wouldn’t. You’d just dig in and help.” She sucked in a deep breath and put her hands on her hips. “So I’ll be quiet and do the same.”
Mason gave her a grateful smile. “Thanks.”
She returned to the bags. “I have bibs and sippy cups and plates and utensils in here. If you’ll grab the crib out of the car, you can work on putting it together while I get Layla fed.” While she was talking, the little girl shuffled into the room. Two fingers were in her mouth and she stared with wide eyes at Harper. She was a pretty little thing. Someday those eyes were going to have no trouble getting male attention. They were large and soulful... Just like Mason’s.
Harper shook her head. Nope. Not going there. Her attraction wasn’t welcome. “Are you hungry?” Harper asked the little girl, leaning back to see her face. A red, wet but hopeful set of eyes met Harper’s. Harper smiled, hoping the baby couldn’t tell how strained it was. “Do you like macaroni and cheese?”
“You bought a crib?” Mason asked in shock.
Harper glanced over. “Of course.”
“I...” Mason shook his head. “Right. A crib. I’ll get right on that.” Still shaking his head, he walked out the front door.
Layla watched him go, then turned to Harper again.
Harper nodded. “Macaroni and cheese? Let’s go get it.” Searching at her feet, Harper grabbed the bag she wanted and headed to the kitchen. She would get the little one settled with a plate of food, then start guiding Mason through everything he would need.
Layla followed, but Harper was surprised to find the girl was silent as a stone. Didn’t two year olds babble like crazy? Harper tried to remember her babysitting days, but it was a little difficult to completely break down who had been what age. She was pretty sure, however, that as soon as they could talk, all little children never stopped talking.
“It’s fine,” she whispered to herself. Harper picked up Layla and propped her on her hip, then began to work around the kitchen one handed, quickly settling into a rhythm. Tonight wasn’t going to be the most nutritious meal, but it was a start. If Harper could help Layla find something familiar, hopefully getting her settled into a routine with Mason would be a little easier.
After all, Harper only had tonight to do this. Tomorrow she was right back to work and lumberjacks and cute kids were no longer her responsibility.
*****
MASON WATCHED FROM the doorway, the heavy bags dangling from his arms as Harper spoke to Layla. The toddler had two fingers stuck in her mouth and her head on Harper’s shoulder as the wonder woman stirred a pot of boiling pasta. If he’d been in a better frame of mind, the scene would have been quite touching, but as it was, Mason was too tired for it to be anything but shocking. “How do you know so much about kids?” he blurted out before he could think better of it.
Harper looked over her shoulder, looking entirely at ease. “I babysat, just like most teenage girls.”
Mason grunted and set the bags on the small kitchen table. His house was a complete and utter mess and he should probably be embarrassed for Harper to see it, but he couldn’t muster the energy. It wasn’t like anything was going to happen between them anyway. He’d already made that clear. So why is she here? The question begged an answer, but Mason was afraid if he asked, she’d leave, and this was the first true sign of hope he’d had since Layla arrived.
Harper hummed and swayed from side to side. “Layla,” Harper crooned. She kissed the tiny girl’s head with a smile. “Such a pretty name for such a pretty girl.” Harper wrinkled her nose. “Who needs a diaper change.” Harper looked to Mason and he groaned.
“I, uh...would you mind...” He scratched the back of his head. How could a grown man who worked a full time, successful job and played with chainsaws for fun be so incompetent?
Harper rolled her eyes. “What is it with men and dirty diapers?” She started toward the bags.
“No...I mean...I can’t quite figure out how to make them work.”
Harper paused. “You don’t know how to put on a diaper?”
Mason shrugged. “We’ve been getting by, but they always seem to sag and I’m pretty sure I go through more wipes than is necessary. Could you teach me?”
To her credit, Harper looked like she tried to stop her smile, but Mason couldn’t exactly blame her for finding humor in the situation. It was utterly ridiculous how something so small had taken him to his knees.
“Didn’t you ever change her diaper when she was smaller? When you visited your sister?”
Mason shook his head. “My sister ran off after high school. I haven’t heard from her in four years.”
Harper’s jaw dropped. “Did you even know you had a niece?”
Mason shook his head slowly, the shame slithering through his gut once again. What kind of an uncle was he?
Harper sighed and squeezed Layla a little tighter. “No wonder this is all such a mess. You guys are having to get to know each other on top of adjusting to living together. Good grief.”
Mason would have chosen other words, but he couldn’t say them in front of Layla or Harper. “So, uh...the diaper?”
Harper nodded. “Okay. I brought diapers with me, but why don’t you show me your setup?”
Mason led her to what used to be his spare bedroom. He had used it for storage, but all the boxes were now against the wall and a blow up mattress covered in blankets sat on the floor. It was all he had. Buying anything at the store had been impossible as of yet since he hadn’t managed to make it out of the house since getting home.
Those perfectly shaped eyebrows went up again. “Okay...” She turned to Mason. “Mason, you’re a great guy. But as your friend, I’d like to say something.”
As your friend. Why did that sentence hurt? He’d already decided that’s all they’d ever be. He couldn’t ask someone like her to wait for him to get his life together. “Go ahead.” He braced himself.
“You might need more help than I can give you. I have a project I’m working on and won’t be able to help after tonight, but it’s clear you’re starting from square one.”
Mason nodded wearily. “I know. I was completely caught off guard by all this and I’m just...not sure how to fix it.”
Harper laughed lightly. “Men and their need to fix things,” she teased. “Layla isn’t something that can be fixed. She just needs to be taken care of and loved.”
Mason didn’t know what to say to that. Well, he had some ideas, but none of them were appropriate. Did Harper also need love? Did she want someone to take care of her? Would she ever consider being with a guy who was a father?
Harper stiffened. “Dang it. I can smell the noodles. Hang on.” She handed Layla to Mason and rushed out of the room.
Mason looked at Layla, who stared back, those fingers still in her mouth. “Sorry about the diaper,” he said. “But Harper knows better than I do how to fix it.” I can’t fix your diaper, our sleep or even my love life. I’m starting to think I’m pretty useless around here.
Layla wiggled and Mason put her down. She immediately followed the path Harper had taken and Mason kept up.
“Hey, baby,” Harper said as they entered the kitchen.
Mason blinked, until he realized she was speaking to Layla. Idiot, he told the warmth in his chest, pushing it aside.
Harper was at the sink, draining the meal. “You want to help me mix this up?”
Layla grabbed at Harper’s leg and Harper set everything down to grab her.
“Has she always been this quiet?” Harper asked over her shoulder after settling Layla on her hip again.
Mason shrugged. “I don’t know. Since getting her home, she either screams, cries or is silent.”
“Hmm...” Harper went back to her work. In no time at all she had mixed the macaroni and cheese and was fishing through the bags. “I bought a booster chair. Can you go find it in the car?”
“Booster chair?”
Harper nodded. “Yeah. It’s a seat that can be hooked to one of your dining chairs so Layla is tall enough to eat. It’s a box. You’ll see it easily.”
Mason nodded and headed outside once again. How had Harper known everything to buy? He didn’t even know the names of the products, let alone that he needed them. After finding what he thought was the right box, he went back inside.
Difficult as this was, Harper was proving to be an absolute angel and it made him wish, once again, that things had worked out differently between them. He couldn’t let Layla down, but having Harper in his life would have been such a good thing.
You have her...for just a little bit anyway. Better just enjoy it.
Mason nodded at his own thoughts. Harper said she’d spend the evening with them and help him get settled. That would simply have to be enough. Her friendship was proving invaluable and hopefully could help him get his life back on track. By the time her work was done, he’d be able to let her go and simply be grateful. Yep. Grateful. That was probably all he was feeling towards her anyway. She was saving his bacon. Who wouldn’t be a little attached to the person doing the saving? It was a normal response and he was a normal guy. This would all work out...he hoped.