Protecting Their Baby

by Sheri WhiteFeather

  “All right. But tell me this…if she is the perpetrator, then what’s her motive? Why would she threaten our baby? And why would she get her boyfriend involved?”

  “I’m still working on that part.” But he hoped that by tomorrow night, he would be closer to figuring it out.

  Chapter 5

  After work, Lisa decided to bake cookies. Yesterday she’d sent the rest of the pie back home with her mom when she should have kept it. Today of all days, she was in need of comfort food.

  She was overwhelmed, in more ways than one. Besides agreeing to go out with Cathy and Nelson, the very people who might be threatening her, she was also troubled by what Cathy had said. The other woman had called her and Rex a couple.

  She frowned at the bowl in front of her. Why did that matter? Did she want to be a couple with him?

  She glanced his way. He was standing next to her, watching her play Betty Crocker.

  When he reached into the bowl and snagged a glob of the dough with a big wooden spoon he’d taken off the counter, she smacked his hand.

  He chuckled, ate what he’d stolen and went after another spoonful.

  “Cut it out, Rex.”

  “Come on, be a sport. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had cookie dough?” He answered his own question. “Since I was a kid living at home.”

  She moved the bowl away from him. She’d just added the chocolate chips. “You’re not a kid anymore. If you want those types of privileges, go find yourself a wife.”

  “Oh, sure. And what do I tell her? ‘Oh, by the way, I’m having a baby with this hot little mama.’”

  What a con. “I hate it when you flirt with me.”

  “No, you don’t. You like it. I can tell.” He went ahead and flirted some more. “And you like being a mama, too. You’ve got that glow they talk about.” He leaned into her, maneuvering his way back to the bowl. “You’re beautiful, Lisa. Motherhood looks good on you.”

  Damn him, she thought. Did he have say all the right things? He was close enough to nuzzle her neck. She could feel him breathing against her skin.

  He reached around and made another play for the unbaked treat, returning to their “wife” conversation. “Just so you know, I’m never getting married.”

  “Never?” She turned to face him. “Ever?”

  “Nope.” He put down the spoon. “I’d make a terrible husband.”

  “That’s what you said about being a dad.”

  “I said that I wouldn’t make a very good dad. That’s not the same as terrible.”

  “You were wrong about the dad thing. I think you’re going to do just fine.”

  “Maybe.” He reached out, and his hand hovered over her stomach, as if he meant to touch her. “But I’m still scared.”

  She appreciated his honesty. “So am I. But most first-time parents probably are.” She looked into his eyes—those overly dark eyes. “You might change your mind about being a husband someday.”

  “Not a chance.” He dropped his hand without touching her. “My parents set a rotten example, snapping at each other all the time. Just the thought of marriage leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.”

  Lisa couldn’t deny her dreams. Like most girls, she wanted the prospect of forever, but only with the right guy. And Rex wasn’t him, she reminded herself. “Have you ever been in a serious relationship?”

  He shook his head. “I’ve never even come close to commitment.” He scoffed at his bachelorhood, but he did it jokingly and with one of his sexy smiles. “Maybe if my lovers were as handy in the kitchen as you are.”

  “You would have reconsidered?” Her heart was doing little swan dives, and she could have kicked herself for it. “Sooo…” She dragged out the word. “Just how many women have you been with?”

  His smile faded. “Are you asking me that because you’re curious or because I promised to investigate my old lovers for the case?”

  “Both,” she responded, even if, at the moment, curiosity won out.

  “Truthfully, I’d rather not spout off a number.”

  “Do you even know the number?” She couldn’t keep from challenging him, especially after all of the personal stuff she’d divulged.

  “Of course I do. I mess around, but I’m not irresponsible. Not in this day and age. I practice safe sex, and I keep names and contact information.”

  She’d had to kiss and tell, but he wouldn’t? Talk about a double standard. To chide him, she pointed to her to tummy and said, “You botched the safe-sex part.”

  “That wasn’t my fault. That was—”

  “What?” she pressed.

  He dragged a hand through his thick, dark hair, messing it up and making the strands spike. “Just something the Creator wanted to happen, I guess.”

  Unsure of what to say, she finished readying the cookies for the oven.

  “Why are you angry with me?” he asked.

  She turned, met his gaze and felt her heart do another of those annoying dives. “I’m not.”

  “Sure seems like it.”

  “I’m just edgy.” And fighting an attraction to him that she wished would go away. As the father of her child, he was going to be part of her life for a very long time.

  Too long, she thought.

  To curb her emotions, she said, “I plan on getting married someday, and then you won’t be this baby’s only father.”

  “Don’t throw some guy in my face who doesn’t exist yet. I’m the daddy. Me. Not some stranger.”

  He sounded jealous, which gave her a strange sense of satisfaction. She softened her tone. “Kids can have more than one set of parents.”

  “Says the adopted girl who isn’t interested in the parents who conceived her?”

  “That has nothing to do with our child.”

  “Sure it does. Your genetic history will be part of the baby’s history, too.”

  “I’ve survived just fine without knowledge of my genetics. Besides, I already told you, it was a closed adoption. I’m not going to go poking around, looking for sealed documents.”

  “If you ever change your mind, I can get past the closed part. I’ve done adoption searches before.”

  She gaped at him, then snapped her mouth shut. He was a P.I. after all. “Just concentrate on who’s threatening me, okay?”

  “I am.” He stepped forward and skimmed his knuckles along her jaw. “All I think about is keeping you safe.”

  Mercy, she thought. He was saying all the right things again. And his touch, oh, his touch. She shivered like the smitten girl she was, recalling the wicked warmth he’d incited on the night they’d made the baby.

  “Don’t do this, Rex.”

  “Do what?”

  “Make me feel things I shouldn’t feel.”

  Realization dawned instantly in his eyes. “I didn’t mean to.” He took his hand away. “I was only trying to comfort you. Damn, this gets confusing.”

  She knew he meant the attraction that seesawed between them. “I try not to think about it, but sometimes it creeps in.”

  “That happens to me, too,” he responded.

  “So keeping me safe isn’t all you think about?”

  “No, but I’m only human.” Before things got too awkward, he saved the moment, cracking a silly joke. “Maybe we should jump each other’s bones again, only really badly this time.”

  “That’s not funny.” But she laughed anyway. “With our luck, it would be even better.”

  “Yeah. Then we’d never get over it. We’d be old and gray and reminiscing about all the hot stuff we did.”

  “No kidding.” Repeating it would be a mistake. Exciting, but dangerous. She banished the thought.

  Once was more than enough.

  While Lisa put the cookies in the oven, Rex took out the trash. No, that wasn’t completely true. He’d gone outside to get some air, too.

  The conversation he’d had with Lisa only made him want her more. But rekindling their one-nighter wasn’t his agenda. He was here
to catch the perpetrator and be on his merry way.

  What merry way? They were having a baby. He couldn’t go skipping off forever. Regardless, they had to set boundaries, lines that shouldn’t be crossed.

  So why did he want to say “To hell with it” and haul her off to bed? Simple answer: Because he was using the body part below his belt instead of his brain.

  He pushed those thoughts aside and returned to the kitchen to discuss Cathy and Nelson. He needed to stay focused on the case.

  Lisa was wiping down the counters. He stood in the doorway and watched her. To him, she looked vulnerable, with her hair tucked behind her ears and flour dusting her blouse.

  “I’ll be with you the entire time tomorrow,” he said, moving farther into the room. “I won’t leave your side.”

  She looked up at him. “It’s going to be strange having dinner with them, wondering if they’re guilty.” She rinsed the dish cloth. “I’m glad that you’re going to stay close to me.”

  “Always,” he told her, even if always only meant until the case was solved. After that, their time together would be based on the baby’s needs.

  She resumed cleaning the kitchen, and he asked, “Can I do anything to help?”

  “Thanks, but I’m just about done.” She stopped, smiled. “Here.” She extended the bowl to him. “You can have what’s left of the batter.”

  Rex accepted the offering and scraped the bowl with the same wooden spoon as before, eating the sticky substance from it.

  She looked at him and laughed. “The big bad warrior.”

  “Yeah, don’t tell anyone. Damn, this is good.” He held out the spoon. “Want some?”

  She came forward, and he fed her a bite. By the time he realized how intimate it was, it was too late. While she licked the spoon, their gazes locked.

  A jolt of sexual energy blasted down his body, igniting the metal teeth on his zipper and making the rebellious body part strain against it.

  Lisa stepped back and dabbed her mouth. He wanted to kiss her senseless.

  “I should check on the cookies.” She fumbled with the oven door. Clearly, she was feeling the attraction, too.

  Apparently their little talk earlier hadn’t made a dent in either of their libidos.

  “They’re not quite done,” she said.

  He could have told her that. The timer she’d set hadn’t gone off yet.

  “I’ll rinse the bowl.” He went to the sink and doused it, struggling to drown his hormones, as well. He opened the dishwasher and tried to make room, but couldn’t get the bowl to fit.

  “I’ll do it.” She attempted to take over, and the tips of their fingers connected.

  It could have been the tips of their tongues. Blood pulsed through Rex’s veins. His heart raced, too. The big bad warrior couldn’t get his vitals under control.

  “I’ll hand wash the bowl,” Lisa said, giving up on finding a place for it in the dishwasher. By now, she seemed jittery. She was in as bad as shape as he was.

  But she managed to fill the sink with sudsy water. He should have left the kitchen, but he stayed, wanting to be near her.

  When the oven timer finally sounded, she busied herself with the cookies again. He waited around for them to cool, using it as an excuse to torture himself.

  “I’ll get the milk.” He proceeded to pour two frosty glasses.

  She put the cookies on a plate, and they sat at the table and made pigs of themselves. But stuffing their faces didn’t help. The warm, gooey sweetness made him want her even more. He thought about sitophila or whatever it was called. From what he knew, it was the desire to eat foods off the body of another person. Something he hadn’t craved until now.

  Rex had never been the fetish type, but being around Lisa was doing kinky things to him.

  Was she a siren in disguise?

  Right. A pregnant siren. A suburban seductress who owned a cute little dance studio and baked cookies.

  “I’m full,” she said.

  “Me, too.” Full of sexual insanity. “No more for me.”

  “Me, neither.” She cleared the table, domestic as ever. “It’s getting late. I think I’ll go soak in the tub.”

  He cursed in his mind. Now he had to envision her gloriously naked and surrounded by scented bubbles.

  Would the madness ever end?

  He tried to block the image. “I should get back to work.”

  “And see what you can find on Cathy and Nelson?”

  Rex nodded. Lisa had given him Cathy’s Social Security number and birth date from her employee file, which would help him run a thorough search. “I’ll probably be up late.”

  “Not me. I’m beat. After my bath, I’m going to turn in.”

  “Sure. Okay. Sleep tight.” He watched her walk away, torn between the need to keep her safe and just plain keep her.

  Rex worked for hours, but he didn’t uncover any disturbing information. Cathy Leonard and Nelson Clemmons appeared to be responsible citizens.

  Cathy’s Social Security number revealed a good credit score and no aliases. Neither she nor Nelson had a criminal record. They didn’t hail from violent families. Cathy had gotten a few parking tickets, and Nelson had been popped for jaywalking, but the fines had been paid on time. Both had been born and raised in Southern California, living with their parents until they’d moved in with each other. Nelson had a degree from a technical college; Cathy was well schooled in dance.

  Of course he was going to have to dig deeper for warped religious affiliations, racial bigotry, a personal vendetta or anything else that might motivate them to threaten Lisa and the baby.

  He kept searching, although he doubted that he would find much more about them online. His job entailed footwork, too. Hopefully the dinner tomorrow night would reveal the things he was looking for.

  If not, he would continue his quest until he cleared them as suspects or proved that they were the perpetrators.

  His cell phone rang, and he checked the display screen and discovered that it was his mom. She was calling late. North Carolina was three hours ahead, but she’d always been a bit of a night owl.

  He stalled, debating if he should answer it. She had the annoying habit of sticking her nose into his life, and he wasn’t in the mood for twenty questions. Then again, if he didn’t pick up, she would only call back until she got him.

  Marie Sixkiller was a persistent woman.

  “Hi, Mom,” he said, instead of the customary “Hello.”

  “I was beginning to think you were avoiding me.”

  “I thought about it.”

  She chided him right back. “How L.A. of you.”

  He smiled, picturing her in the modest house where he’d grown up. She would be seated on their outdated sofa—the one his dad had reupholstered years ago—and wearing an old robe and fuzzy socks. Her hair wouldn’t be in curlers, though. At least she didn’t take her dowdy image that far.

  “When are you going to visit?” she asked. “We miss you.”

  “I don’t know. For now, I’m swamped.”

  She exhaled a big, noisy sigh. She was a Southern Baptist with a knack for drama. “You should at least come for the fair. That will give you some time to plan the trip.”

  He had to admit that the Cherokee Indian Fair was his favorite event, during his favorite time of year. He loved the crisp fall weather, the carnival, the fireworks, the music, the traditional food and arts and crafts.

  “Maybe,” he said.

  “Oh, Rex, you’re always so vague.”

  “I have a lot going on.”

  “Like what?”

  A woman and unborn child to protect, he thought. “Nothing that concerns you.” Yeah, right. Only her grandbaby.

  “You’re as tight-lipped as your dad.”

  “Is he asleep?”

  “Snoring, as usual.”

  Such an unhappy pair, Rex thought. Was it any wonder he was keeping Lisa and their kid to himself? Nonetheless, he got a pang of homesickness, and h
e imagined bringing them to the fair.

  Was that even possible? The fair was in October. The little one probably wouldn’t even be born yet. Some expectant father he was. He didn’t know Lisa’s due date.

  “I should go, Mom.”

  “Go where?”

  “Just go. I have things to do.”

  “I love you, son,” she said, making his heart ache.

  “I love you, too. And Dad,” he added.

  They said goodbye, and when he hung up, he was tempted to check on Lisa, curious if she cradled her stomach while she slept.

  But he steered clear of her room and the conflicting emotion that went with it.

  Chapter 6

  The next night’s dinner was at a steak and seafood place. Cathy and Nelson had let Rex and Lisa choose the location, and Rex had suggested this restaurant because it was dimly lit and traditional. He hoped that the atmosphere would create a relaxed vibe.

  Lord knew they needed it.

  Inside the booth, Cathy chattered incessantly, and Nelson was overly quiet. Lisa picked at her meal, quiet, as well. Rex did his best to make the situation seem normal. He hadn’t mentioned the case yet.

  Nelson kept glancing at Lisa. He was tall but slightly built, with light brown hair and what most people would consider average features. In a lineup, he wouldn’t stand out.

  Although the looks he was giving Lisa didn’t strike Rex as amorous, he wondered if the other man had a hidden crush on her. That would provide motive.

  And what about Cathy? Was she involved? Or had Nelson stabbed the doll and used Snow White in the e-mail to cast blame on his girlfriend? If cornered, would he claim that she was as computer savvy as he was?

  Rex’s mind cluttered with even more questions.

  Had Nelson been stalking Lisa? Watching her from afar? Had he collected information about Lisa from Cathy? The brunette yapped about anything and everything.

  At the moment, she was talking about Barker, her beloved new puppy, a Chihuahua/poodle mix or Chipoo, if you will.

  “He loves playing at the beach,” she said. “He’s just the cutest little thing. Lisa, would it be all right if I brought him to studio so everyone can see him?”