The Mommy Proposal

by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  “I sent them an e-mail a few days ago and told them I was adopting Landry.”

  Brooke blinked. There were so many things wrong with that scenario she didn’t know where to start. “And they’re just now getting back to you?” she asked, aghast.

  “They probably wanted to talk to each other, get on the same page, before they contacted me. And that wouldn’t have been easy. I think I told you they live and work in different countries overseas.”

  What Nate hadn’t discussed was the state of their union. Now, she had to wonder. “You didn’t say…. Are they divorced?”

  “No.” Nate shrugged, as if that would be difficult to imagine, too. “They just live and work in different places,” he explained. “It’s been that way for the last, I don’t know, ten or fifteen years.”

  “That must be hard.”

  “Honestly? I think they prefer it that way. Even when they worked in the same city they rarely saw each other. They’re both married to their jobs.”

  “What was it like for you, when you were a kid?”

  “I had nannies when I was younger. When I was in sixth grade, I switched to a residential private school, and I stayed at the school whenever they were out of town.”

  “Sounds…flexible.” And as lonely, in certain ways, as her life as a foster child.

  Funny, she’d thought she and Nate were so different. Now she saw that wasn’t necessarily so. She swallowed the knot of building emotion in her throat.

  Nate continued with a matter-of-fact shrug. “I understood they both had demanding jobs. And I never had any doubt that, despite the fact they weren’t hands-on types in the parenting department, they loved me and wanted only the best for all of us.”

  Brooke took a deep breath and tried not to judge. It wasn’t easy, given that this story was bringing out every protective, loving instinct in her and then some.

  She traced the powerful outline of his shoulder with her fingertip and gently encouraged him to go on unburdening himself, the same way she had with him. “The best being?”

  That rueful, cynically accepting smile came again. “Successful careers and professional lives for all of us, of course.”

  The Hutchinsons had certainly achieved that, from the sound of it, Brooke thought. Which brought them back to the text messages Nate’s mom and dad had sent him. “So what did your parents say about your plan to adopt Landry?”

  Nate peered at the screen. “My mother’s text message says ‘Nathaniel, if you want a child—and I’m not sure it’s a good idea to go it alone given the tremendous business responsibilities you shoulder—then please get married and have one the old-fashioned way.’”

  Brooke did her best not to wince. “And your dad?”

  Nate read out loud, “‘Is Landry your child? Because of course if he is, you have a duty to the boy. But if not, you have no business taking this on.’”

  Nate showed the screen to her.

  There were no loving overtures to soften the blow, just sanctimonious advice. Brooke’s heart went out to Nate. “That’s harsh.”

  He shrugged. “And direct. They’re both CEO’s…. So they tend to cut to the chase. I knew they wouldn’t sugar-coat it, that they most likely would not approve of anything out of the ordinary on the personal front for me.”

  And yet he’d told them, anyway. Which meant part of him, the long-ago kid in him, still wanted their approval, even if he knew by now he would never get it. Not the way he wanted.

  Brooke studied him. “What would have happened if you had e-mailed them that you were in love and getting married?” If, for instance, you were ever to say that about us….

  “They would have offered formal congratulations and told me to get an ironclad prenup. After, of course, they did a thorough background check on not just my fiancée, but those around her.”

  Outrageous! Brooke rolled onto her stomach and rested her chin on her palm. “What did they think of Seraphina?” she asked curiously.

  Nate frowned. “They saw her as a little too soft and sentimental to be a good executive wife, which was—in their estimation—what I needed for a successful climb up the career ladder.”

  Yet he had done it all by himself, Brooke noted proudly.

  “So when the engagement ended?”

  Nate tossed the phone aside and lay down again, facing her. His bare knee nudged hers beneath the covers. “They made no effort to disguise their relief,” he continued, frankly. “They both felt I had avoided catastrophe.”

  Brooke studied his eyes for any clue to his feelings. “So to have Seraphina come back into your life, through her son…”

  “Was not good news, not to them,” Nate replied succinctly, then fell silent, brooding again.

  There were mere inches between them. It felt like an ocean. Wanting to recapture some of their earlier closeness, Brooke reached out and covered his hand with hers. “What are you thinking?”

  He gave her a rueful look, then ran a palm over his face. “That I probably should have listened to my gut and not contacted my parents at all at this juncture. I should have waited until it was a fait accompli—when social pressure would have forced them to congratulate me, and welcome Landry to the family publicly. Knowing them, they’d find a way to make it all seem somehow noble and preordained.”

  Brooke’s heart ached for him. She had an idea how much the lack of support from his parents must hurt. “It is noble and preordained, Nate. I’ve watched you with Landry. I know how right what you’re doing is.”

  Although his expression lightened, a hint of sadness lingered in Nate’s gaze. “Fortunately, my parents and I see each other so seldom now—once every year or two at most—that by the time we do get together again, Landry will officially be my son.” He finished with his customary optimism.

  Relieved that Nate had rebounded so quickly, Brooke lifted his hand and pressed a kiss to the back of his knuckles. “So they’ll accept him and Landry will never have to know your parents disapproved.”

  The tension left Nate’s body. He relaxed even more as she kissed his hand again. “That would be the plan.”

  Their eyes met. “You deserve better,” she said quietly.

  He took her arm and tugged her close. “I think I’ve finally got it.” He bent his head and kissed her passionately “In you.”

  Chapter Eleven

  “Why the frown?” Nate asked Brooke several hours later as he snuggled her closer, a wave of tenderness unlike anything he had ever felt radiating through him. She was so beautiful in her post-lovemaking dishabille. So beautiful all the time… It didn’t matter whether she was in mom mode, on the job…or in his bed.

  “I hate the thought of going back to work,” she murmured, reluctantly glancing at her watch. “But with Holly Carson due here at one o’clock, to begin work on the dining-room mural, I’ve got to get going.”

  Nate had meetings, too. He rose and began to dress. “About this evening. I’ll pick up the kids at camp and take them to the retirement village to see Jessalyn.”

  “I promised Landry I’d stop by to say hello to his great-grandmother, too. He wants her to get to know me.”

  Nate understood why. Brooke was one special woman. She’d already made a huge difference in Landry’s life, by coaxing him out of his shell. “Then why don’t we go over together to pick them up after the visit. Around seven o’clock?”

  Surprise registered in Brooke’s eyes. “You’re not going to stay for the visit?”

  Nate would have, had he been invited. “Landry thought it might go better with just him and Cole there. But he wanted me to stop in and say hello at the end of their time together.”

  “Then let’s go together,” Brooke said.

  “Maybe stop for dinner out afterward?” Nate suggested, aware how much the four of them were beginning to feel like family.

  Brooke smiled in a way that warmed his heart. “Sounds like a plan.”

  The rest of the day flew by. Nate picked up the guys as scheduled, at
five o’clock, when camp ended. As usual, Landry and Cole spent the entire time talking, while Nate drove. But now he was occasionally included in the conversation about digital imaging and computer conversions.

  “You sure you don’t want me to go in?” Nate asked, pulling up in front of the entrance to the retirement home.

  Landry nodded. “We can handle it. But—” he paused, sounding as if his heart was in his throat “—thanks for offering, Nate.” Gaze averted, the boy got out of the car.

  Cole followed. With their heads close together, they strolled toward the entrance. Nate thought—but couldn’t be sure—that he saw Landry wipe a tear from the corner of his eye.

  No doubt about it. This was a big day…for all of them.

  “EVERYTHING OKAY?” Brooke asked, when Nate swung by the mansion to pick her up. He looked distracted, and concerned in a way he hadn’t been when they had parted earlier that afternoon.

  For a second she thought he wouldn’t answer. Finally, he said, “I hope Landry’s visit with Jessalyn is going well.”

  Brooke grinned, hearing the worry in his voice. “You sound like such a dad,” she teased, and it was so good to see and hear. “Worrying—often unnecessarily—is what we parents do best,” she explained when he shot her a sidelong glance.

  He grinned as they walked toward his Jaguar. “Is that what this is?”

  Brooke let her shoulder brush him in a playful nudge. “Doesn’t feel familiar, huh?”

  He wrapped his arm about her shoulder and pulled her close to his side. “It’s beginning to,” he whispered in her ear.

  When they reached his sedan, he continued around to the passenger side. Trying not to make too much of the fact that he was opening her door for her, the way he would have had they been on an actual date, Brooke slid into the car, settled into the leather seat and smoothed her skirt over her knees. “I’m sure Landry and Cole are both doing fine.” She paused to look up at him. “Otherwise, we would have heard. Cole would have called me on his cell phone.”

  Nate came around to the driver’s side and slipped behind the wheel. “I wasn’t aware he had a phone of his own.”

  “He doesn’t use it a lot. He’s not at the age where he spends a lot of time talking on the phone. But I feel better knowing he has it, in case of an emergency, or if anything unexpected comes up.”

  “I should probably get Landry one.” Nate frowned, as if he felt he had failed. “I hadn’t thought of that.”

  “I’m sure he’d appreciate it.” Brooke opened up her purse and removed her notebook.

  “I’ll talk to him about it this evening,” Nate vowed.

  “In the meantime, I’d like to update you on where we stand with the makeover.” She consulted her notes.

  “So all you have left to do is add accessories and artwork and finish the formal dining room,” Nate concluded, when her recitation was complete.

  Brooke nodded. “With the exception of the mural, which is going to take a few weeks, I’ll be done by Friday evening. Which is good, because I start another job next Wednesday, and I need a couple of days off to handle things I’ve let slide at home.”

  Nate parked in front of the assisted-living center. “You’re welcome to stay in the caretaker’s cottage as long as you like,” he offered as he cut the motor.

  “Thank you, but it’s time Cole and I head home. Especially since…”

  He guessed correctly where the conversation was headed. “We’ve become lovers.”

  Brooke thrilled to hear him say that out loud. Still, Nate was a man with a reputation for having dated a lot of women. She released the latch on her shoulder harness and turned toward him. Suddenly, her heart was pounding. Her palms were damp. “Is that what we are?”

  With his marine-blue eyes glittering warmly, he put his hand on hers and murmured, “I guess now is as good a time as any to make my pitch.” He paused, looking sexy and unutterably masculine. She felt another lightning bolt surge of attraction. “I want us to come out of the shadows. Make it official. And start being seen together publicly.”

  “Are we talking about dating?”

  His confident smile widened. “Call it whatever you want. As long as we’re exclusive.”

  It was a tempting invitation. If their lives hadn’t been so complicated, she would have jumped on it. As it was, it felt as if they were moving too fast. And it scared her. “That’s a little more than just dating.”

  He nodded, accepting her assessment. His eyes swept the length of her, then returned with laser accuracy to her face. “And I hope you want that, too.”

  Despite what she had tried to tell herself earlier, Brooke had to admit she wouldn’t have made love with Nate if her feelings for him hadn’t been serious. The question was, would he have gone after her if he hadn’t needed her to help him connect with his “son”? The last thing she wanted either of them to do was mistake need for love. And there was no doubt Nate—and Landry—had needed her the last couple of weeks. Just as she and Cole had benefited immensely from having Nate and Landry in their lives.

  “Aren’t we skipping a few steps?” she asked gently, as her customary common sense reasserted itself. She didn’t want to make the same mistake she had made with Seamus. He’d been a serial dater, too, with a reputation for never being satisfied with any one woman until Brooke came along. And look how that had worked out….

  She knew she wouldn’t be able to bear it if Nate ever looked at her the way her late husband had—with sadness and disappointment, and then later, with avoidance and detachment.

  She couldn’t bear another mistake in the marriage department. She doubted Nate wanted another failed romantic relationship, either.

  “I know what I want,” he said quietly, with the drive and focus she was beginning to know so well. “And that’s you.” He paused, his emotional armor going up once again. “The question is—what do you want?”

  “Time,” Brooke answered honestly. To make sure our feelings are real and lasting. She swallowed painfully. “And enough space to figure this all out.”

  IT WASN’T THE ANSWER Nate was looking for, but it left the window for more wide open, and that was better than all-out rejection. He forced himself to sacrifice his own timetable and desires in favor of hers. “Take all the time you need,” he told her gently.

  Brooke regarded him with wonder in her golden-brown eyes. “You mean that.”

  Although he had once sworn he would never open his heart to another woman who didn’t feel everything he did, Nate was suddenly willing to wait as long as it took. Which was another sign of how important Brooke was to him. “I do,” he told her sincerely.

  Her smile lit up his day. Visibly relieved, she squeezed his hand. Together, they got out of the car and went inside to find their sons.

  Cole and Landry were in the visitors room, a large light and airy space filled with comfortable tables and chairs. Jessalyn was holding court with the two young men, chatting away and laughing.

  She looked radiant, and much more energetic than the last time Nate and Brooke had seen her. He couldn’t help but note that Landry appeared much healthier and happier, too.

  “Thank you for bringing the boys to see me,” Jessalyn said as Nate approached.

  “It was my pleasure.”

  “We told Gran that we’d visit again on Saturday morning,” Landry said. “It’s okay, isn’t it?”

  Nate nodded. He had been hoping Landry and Jessalyn would make up. “It’s more than okay.”

  Nate and Brooke stayed to visit for a while, and then all four of them headed out to the car. Since it was nearly 8:00 p.m., the boys were ravenous. After a brief consultation, they headed for P. F. Chang’s.

  “I’m glad you visited your great-grandmother,” Nate said, after they had all studied the menu and placed their orders.

  “I thought seeing her in an old people’s home would be awful,” Landry admitted with a rueful twist of his lips. “That she’d be just sitting around waiting to die. But i
t was actually pretty nice. I can see that she’s better off with all the nurses, and people her own age and stuff. Anyway—” he ducked his head “—I guess I don’t have to feel like I deserted her anymore.”

  Nate had assumed—wrongly, he now knew—that it was the other way around, that it was Landry who had felt abandoned. “I imagine it comforted your great-grandmother to see you looking so good, too,” he soothed.

  Landry nodded. “She thinks it’s clear I’m where I’m supposed to be now.”

  The question was, what did Landry think? Nate wondered.

  The teen’s brow furrowed. “Did you hear anything about the DNA test yet?”

  “We probably won’t learn anything until early next week.” Nate wasn’t about to protest any turn of events that would buy him more time to convince Landry that he belonged with him.

  The teen fiddled with the chopsticks next to his plate. “What about your lawyer and that court thing we’ve got to do?”

  “Ms. Tanous will file the papers as soon as we tell her we’re ready.”

  Landry nodded, taking it all in.

  Cole looked uneasy, as if he felt for his friend.

  Brooke appeared about to intervene, but then Landry leaned forward and asked, “Do you think I’m more like you, Nate? Or Lawrence? ’Cause I’ve been thinking I’m a lot like you, in that I like to make decisions and be in charge of stuff.”

  Surprised and pleased by the comparison, Nate smiled. “You want to run your own company one day?”

  “Maybe,” he acknowledged shyly.

  Cole chuckled. “I can totally see you calling all the shots. You’re bossy, man.”

  Landry grinned and elbowed him.

  “Always telling me what to do,” Cole added.

  The two boys pretended to fight over the last dumpling. “That’s cause I’m older.”

  “By one year!” Cole protested.

  Landry let him have the dumpling, and ate a spring roll with spicy orange sauce instead. “One year’s a lot, especially between middle and high school.”