What Nathan Wants

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  This time, when she snuggled up to him and wrapped her arm around his waist, it was by choice.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Amy couldn’t help but notice how well-behaved the boys were around Nathan. She watched them all morning, and Chase did everything he wanted with an enthusiasm that didn’t make any sense. Granted, he was doing fun things with the two, like trying to teach them to play tennis, but the whole thing struck her as odd. The kids were too good. They didn’t fight or throw a tantrum over anything.

  She shook her head as Chase handed Byron the tennis ball. Surely, just because Nathan told Chase to do that, it shouldn’t be enough of a reason for Chase to obey, especially since Chase was the one who retrieved the ball. In all the times she’d watched Chase and Byron in the past, she never once saw Chase happily hand something over to his little brother. But there he was, giving the ball to Byron as if he always did this.

  She set the glasses of lemonade on the table between the two chairs and studied Nathan. Yes, he was tall and strong. Maybe a little kid would obey him out of fear, but when she glanced at Chase and Byron, they were smiling and laughing. So they weren’t doing what he asked because they were afraid of him. She sighed. Maybe she’d never figure it out. Nathan might have a way with people, but she had a hard time believing something strange wasn’t going on when she wasn’t looking.

  It didn’t take her long to learn why the kids were so well-mannered. After they finished dinner at the fast food place Chase wanted to go to, she returned from the bathroom and saw Nathan hand each of the two boys a dollar bill.

  Once she overcame her shock, she walked up to them and said, “So this is how you’ve been getting them to behave.”

  Nathan’s eyebrows rose. “It’s been working, hasn’t it?”

  She rolled her eyes. “But you can’t do this to kids.”

  He turned to them. “Go play on the jungle gym over there.”

  Chase and Byron cheered and ran to the slide.

  “I know what you’re thinking,” Nathan began, “but you’re wrong. I am perfectly capable of handling our child without paying him or her off.”

  “Are you?”

  “Of course I am.” He took her hand and urged her to sit beside him. “Look, these are other people’s kids.”

  “Danielle is my best friend.”

  “Exactly. The point is those kids don’t belong to us. It’s not our job to raise them to be responsible citizens. Our job is to give them a good time while they’re visiting us.”

  “You can do that without money.”

  “I guess, but I don’t have candy sitting around the house.”

  She shook her head. “You’re amazing, you know that? You can rationalize anything.”

  “What’s to rationalize? They’re only here for the weekend. Now, I know I was supposed to freak out and swear off kids altogether before I released you from this marriage, but it’s not going to happen. In case you haven’t noticed, I can hire a nanny if I don’t want to raise the kid, so changing a ton of dirty diapers isn’t going to dissuade me from having one.”

  “Well, I don’t want a nanny coming in and raising my child. I want to be the one to do that.”

  He smiled and squeezed her hand. “Which is one of the reasons I chose you. You’re the kind of employee who takes initiative. I figure that would apply to your personal life too. And before you start in on how I only married you so you’d be a mother to my child, lots of women would agree to my terms if it meant they could have access to my bank account.”

  Okay. So he had a good point. She gave a reluctant nod.

  “I was married before,” he told her, leaning back in the booth and putting his arm around her shoulders so he could pull her closer to him. “Her name was Veronica. Until she gets married next month, her last name will still be Rudolph.”

  “I’ve heard of her,” Amy commented.

  “I’m sure most of Omaha has. You weren’t here five years ago when we got a divorce. It was in the papers for awhile, and many rumors floated around.”

  “What kind of rumors?” She tried not to sound interested, but she had to admit that this definitely got her attention.

  “The usual. Secret lovers, drugs, alcohol. Stuff like that.”

  She hid her disappointment. For some reason, she expected something a little...juicier. “It sounds like the typical tabloid stuff.”

  “That’s exactly what it was.”

  “So what really happened?”

  “I caught her in bed with another man.”

  “Oh.” That had to have hurt. She’d be devastated if Sean had been with another woman. As much as she hated the fact that he died, she was glad he’d been faithful to her. “I’m sorry.”

  He shrugged. “It was just as well. Looking back, she did me a favor. She hated children. I don’t think she would have ever agreed to have one. Of course, when I married her, I wasn’t thinking that far down the road.”

  “Why am I not surprised?”

  “Hey, I happen to think you’re more attractive than her.”

  “I’ve seen her picture in a couple of magazines. She’s gorgeous.”

  “Only on the surface.” He kissed her lightly on the ear, causing a tingle to rush up and down her spine. “I promise that I won’t pay our kid to be good. Alright?”

  “Alright.” She realized, a little too late, that her agreement with his statement clearly indicated her concession to stay in the marriage. She glanced at him. “You have a sneaky way of wording things.”

  His eyes widened. “I have no idea what you mean.”

  “Right.”

  She shook her head but decided not to press the issue. The day had been surprisingly good, even if he did bribe the children to be on their best behavior, but it had been nice to watch him interact with them. She had no doubt that he’d be a good father, and he’d want to be involved in his child’s life. Choosing to enjoy the moment for what it was, she relaxed against him and watched her “nephews” play.

  ***

  Danielle came by to pick up the kids the next day, and while Nathan brought their things down from the spare bedroom, Danielle whispered, “So, how did it go?”

  “Great,” Amy honestly replied.

  “Really?”

  “Yep. It turns out he’s good with kids.”

  “Then you’ll stay with him?”

  Amy caught the hopeful gleam in her friend’s eye. “I’m thinking about it.”

  “Thinking? What’s there to think about?” Danielle motioned to the large entryway. “All of this can be yours if you just say yes.”

  “But I hardly know him. I mean, I’m learning about him and I like what I’m learning, but how much do I really know?”

  “You can’t know everything about a man before you marry him.”

  “I know that, but Sean and I dated for a year before we got married.”

  The sound of kids laughing directed their attention to the stairs where Nathan waited for the oldest boy to catch up to him. He held the suitcase and diaper bag in one hand and held Byron’s hand with the other.

  Danielle nudged her in the side and gave her a pleading look.

  “He pays them to behave,” Amy whispered. “That’s why they love him.”

  Danielle’s expression turned from one of surprise to one of amusement. “If it works...”

  “Danielle, it’s awful. What is he teaching them?”

  “That if they are good employees, they might get a raise?”

  “I doubt it.”

  Nathan smiled at Danielle. “Did you have a good weekend?”

  “The best,” Danielle told him. “Thanks to you and Amy.”

  “I know that I’m your boss, but you and your husband should get together with me and Amy sometime. It’d be nice to get to know Amy’s friends.”

  Danielle appeared nervous but said, “Yeah. That’d be fun.”

  The phone rang.

  “I’ll get it.” Nathan gave the boys a high-five and turne
d to the kitchen.

  “We want to come back,” Chase told his mom.

  “Wow,” Danielle replied. “They’re not picky kids, but I’m surprised.” She looked down at her boys. “Aren’t you happy to see your mother?”

  “‘Course we are!” Chase reached up to hug her while Byron grabbed her by the leg and called out ‘mama’!

  “They did miss you. Why else do you think they asked to talk to you and Randy twenty times while you were gone?”

  “True.” She hugged her children. “I missed you guys so much!”

  “No one will ever replace their mother,” Amy assured her. “I’ll see you at work tomorrow.”

  Danielle stood up straight and swung the diaper bag over her shoulder. “You’re really going back to work?”

  “Yes. I miss it there.”

  “You miss it because you don’t take advantage of the many shopping opportunities you have.” She sighed and shrugged. “I’ll never understand you, Amy, but I love you.”

  “Same here. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Danielle picked up the suitcase and led her children to the car while Nathan came out of the kitchen.

  “Oh. They’re gone already?” he asked, looking disappointed.

  “She has to get them to bed so she can be at work bright and early tomorrow morning.” Amy shut the door and grinned. “You know how upset you’ll be if we don’t provide excellent customer service.”

  “Not as upset as you get when a man proposes,” he quipped. “If memory serves, you wanted to run me over with your car.”

  She snorted. “That was hardly a proposal. It was a mandate.”

  “I’ll never understand how you saw it that way, but that’s all water under the bridge. That was Ryan Jackson on the phone. His wife had a healthy boy and girl early this morning, so they can’t make it for dinner this week.”

  “So everything went okay?”

  “Yep. Tyler is Ryan’s cousin, so I should go down there to say congratulations. Want to come?”

  “I don’t know. I mean, they don’t even know me.”

  “But you’re my wife, so it’s okay.”

  “Well...” Despite her uncertainty, she nodded. “Okay. I’ll go.”

  “Great! We won’t stay long. Just long enough to say hi and to congratulate them.”

  She studied him. “You seem a little too eager to do this.”

  “Nonsense. I’m a happy person all the time. Let’s go.”

  She joined him and when they got to the hospital, he bought a floral bouquet and two balloons. “You sure do go all out for someone you hardly know,” she commented as they got into an elevator.

  “Then think of how I’ll be when you’re the one who has the baby.” He winked at her. “I can decorate your entire maternity suite with flowers.”

  “No. That’s not necessary.”

  “Why? Don’t you like flowers?”

  “Sure, I do, but not a mountain’s worth.”

  The elevator went up and once the doors opened, they stepped onto the maternity ward. She let him lead the way. He found Tyler almost as soon as they walked through the double doors and checked in.

  Tyler shook his head as soon as he saw Nathan. “One would swear you’re the father of the babies.” He glanced at Amy. “I can only imagine what he’s been putting you through.”

  “I haven’t been putting her through anything,” Nathan replied. “I’ve been a perfect gentleman. So how is everyone doing?”

  “Good.” Tyler smiled. “They decided to name the boy Jacob Tyler. Isn’t that great? I get to be the kid’s middle name.”

  “What did they name the girl?”

  “Stacey Ann.”

  “That’s a pretty name,” Amy commented.

  “You can name our child whatever you want,” Nathan promised her.

  “You’re too obvious,” she told him.

  “I’m forty. At my age, I don’t have the luxury of being subtle.”

  “Anyway,” Tyler interrupted them, “the new parents are down here. I don’t know where you’re going to put those things. The room is full as it is.”

  He shrugged. “We’ll find a place.”

  Since Amy didn’t know any of the people who hovered around the woman propped up in the bed holding the girl, she stayed toward the door but made sure she didn’t block it. She crossed her arms, suddenly feeling nervous about being there. Nathan found a small space left between the other flowers and balloons and set his gift down.

  To her surprise, he didn’t join her. Instead, he went right into the middle of the group and asked Elizabeth Jackson all about her birth. Amy thought some of his questions were none of his business, but apparently Elizabeth and Ryan were happy to answer them. From the way Elizabeth and Ryan’s parents filled in some of the extra details, Amy realized they didn’t mind the nosy questions; in fact, they seemed excited to have a chance to tell anyone who cared to listen everything he wanted to know.

  “So after your water broke, you came right to the hospital?” Nathan asked.

  “They say to come to the hospital within an hour after the water breaks,” Ryan replied, standing beside the bed where Elizabeth sat. “You don’t want to risk an infection.”

  “That’s good to know.” Nathan glanced over his shoulder at Amy.

  She quickly averted her gaze, sure her face was flaming red since it was obvious to anyone who cared to pay attention that he was taking mental notes on what to do with Amy if her time ever came to give birth.

  “So how did you know your water broke? Was it like you see it in the movies?” Nathan asked.

  “It can be a gush,” Elizabeth said, smiling at her daughter. “But for me, it wasn’t so apparent. It was like a slow and steady leak.”

  “That’s how it was with me too,” her mother added. “As soon as she called me and asked if it was normal, I knew we were about to be grandparents.” She looked at Elizabeth’s father with the same thrilled look that Amy’s parents had shared when Nathan showed them the baby room.

  “We were so excited,” Elizabeth’s father agreed. “We came right down.”

  “So, did the labor go smoothly?” Nathan asked.

  Tyler leaned between Ryan’s parents to tell Elizabeth, “You’ll have to forgive him. He thinks he’s going to be a father within the year, so he’s planning everything out in advance.” He glanced at Nathan. “As if he can control that kind of thing.”

  It was at that time that Amy had the urge to bolt from the room. She expected everyone to turn in her direction and stare at her, but to her relief, they were so caught up in one of the baby’s sneezing that they didn’t seem to mind.

  “I didn’t labor for long before I went in for a c-section,” Elizabeth said.

  “You don’t want to know the details on that,” Ryan told him. “It was gross.”

  “Oh, there’s nothing gross about any birth,” Ryan’s mother argued.

  “I’m not saying it made me pass out, but I never realized Beth’s insides were that colorful,” Ryan replied.

  Tyler shuddered. “Nathan, if you want more details, then do it when I’m not around, okay? The point is that the babies were born and they and their mother are doing well.”

  “Exactly.” Ryan smiled at Elizabeth and kissed her. “You did a wonderful job, Beth.”

  She returned his smile, and it was apparent that a husband and wife couldn’t be happier with each other and the lives they created together. The moment had a ripple effect through the room, for their parents also smiled at each other before turning their attention back to Elizabeth and Ryan.

  Ryan held his son to Nathan. “Would you like to hold him?”

  “Yes, I would.” Nathan gently took the baby in his arms and asked, “How much does he weigh?”

  “Four pounds. His sister is almost five pounds,” Ryan answered.

  Nathan stroked the boy’s cheek and laughed when the baby wrapped his hand around his finger. “I didn’t think a newborn would be this tiny.” />
  “That’s because he’s a twin,” Elizabeth said. “I think the average is around seven or eight pounds for a newborn?” She glanced at her mother.

  Her mother shrugged. “It’s been forever since I gave birth to you. I think you were about seven and a half pounds.”

  “That’s still tiny,” Nathan responded.

  “Well, they don’t come out being twenty pounds,” Tyler interjected.

  “Thank goodness!” Elizabeth gasped.

  The group chuckled and Nathan turned around, as if he just realized that Amy wasn’t right next to him. He waved her over. “You should hold him. It’s a lot of fun.”

  Acutely aware that all eyes had turned to her, Amy reluctantly stepped forward. She smiled uncertainly and was rewarded with smiles from everyone else.

  “This is my wife, Amy. We got married about a week ago,” Nathan introduced.

  “Nice to meet you, Amy,” Elizabeth said.

  “Congratulations on your children,” Amy replied, not knowing what else to say. She sure wasn’t about to ask the poor woman a bunch of personal questions like Nathan did!

  “We’re getting started on our own family,” Nathan told them.

  Amy had to bite back a sarcastic reply. Maybe she was considering it, but she didn’t recall giving him the green light. She forced a polite smile as he placed the baby in her arms. Since she hadn’t held a newborn before, she experienced a sudden bout of apprehension with the task. The sleeping boy was so small. What if she dropped him? She remained still, afraid to move.

  “Doesn’t it feel nice to hold a baby?” Nathan asked her.

  If she wasn’t concentrating so hard on keeping the baby secure, she would have scowled at him. The fact that he seemed to think all he had to do was want something and get it with the snap of his fingers was irritating her, especially when he did it in front of a group of strangers.

  Tyler rolled his eyes but didn’t say anything. At least one other person in the room knew what was going on and agreed with her. That gave her a little consolation.

  Nathan and Amy stayed to visit for another ten minutes before they left, and Amy decided she was going to do something that didn’t follow Nathan’s neatly planned calendar of events. When they reached the elevator, she kept walking.