Deputy Daddy

by Patricia Johns

  That evening, Lily dressed Emily in a sundress she’d been given by a neighbor and wondered if she could fix this. But how? Bryce had agreed to help them look into Aaron—that was worth something. Why, oh why, didn’t she think a little more before opening her mouth and telling a relative stranger all of their family business? Except that her brothers had tried to break into the house, and so that hadn’t been avoidable, and her aunt...well, she had been preoccupied with Aunt Clarisse, and apparently, Lily talked too much. And that talkative, too-open personality was her bane. She longed to be elegant and self-controlled. She just...wasn’t.

  Emily’s little legs poked out the bottom of her sundress looking as fragile as porcelain. The baby socks she’d been given kept falling off—too big for those newborn feet—and so she decided to forget about them.

  The daylight from the window lit up the room, but the veranda blocked the actual rays of sun. She could see the backs of two chairs from the front porch against the window pane, and she paused to look outside onto the expanse of lawn and that towering elm. Bryce’s minivan turned into the drive. He probably thought she was insane, but it was too late now.

  Emily lay on a blanket on the floor. She looked up at Lily, her big brown eyes trying to focus on her face. She leaned closer to the baby and smiled.

  “Hi, sweetie,” she crooned. “You look so pretty!”

  Emily’s arms flailed, and in spite of all the other drama, a wave of affection rose up inside Lily. This little girl was so precious, yet she was starting out her life with so many challenges. The baby was trying to bond—to find out who would protect her—and Lily wasn’t her mother. She was temporary foster care. She wasn’t the one Emily was supposed to connect with. But how could a newborn not bond with anyone? She had to. And how could Lily stop her own growing affection?

  The front door opened, and Bryce’s footsteps echoed in the foyer. He appeared at the door to the sitting room.

  “You said before not to knock,” he said, shooting her a grin. “Are we leaving now, or—”

  “Is this crazy?” she asked, picking the baby up and rising to her feet. “I mean...I’m overstepping tonight, aren’t I?”

  “Oh, totally,” he replied, his expression deadpan. “This is positively nuts, but it kind of beats the other things I had planned.”

  She laughed, then stopped short. “I’m serious, though.”

  He was joking around, and she was trying to find her footing here.

  “Me, too.” He shrugged. “Look, I could check into Aaron in a less obvious way, if you want. I don’t have to come along. But now that you’ve given me the heads-up, I’m definitely going to look into him. Whether this little dinner happens tonight or not. So no pressure.”

  “Are you comfortable coming along?” she asked.

  “I look at it as undercover work.” He flashed a grin. “Speaking of which, I’d better get changed. I’ll be down in a minute.”

  Bryce’s footsteps moved up the stairs, and she looked down at Emily. How had she gotten herself into all of this? A baby to care for, a wedding to investigate, her brothers picking the worst time imaginable to beg for attention in the most effective way possible... Add to that this handsome officer that she found herself attracted to, and she needed to keep her head on straight.

  A few minutes later, Bryce came back down dressed in a pair of jeans and a gray polo shirt.

  “So how are your brothers today?” he asked.

  What could she say? He already knew too much about the boys.

  “They’re fine...far as I know.” She shook her head. “They aren’t normally quite that bad, so I have to apologize—”

  “Sure they are,” he countered.

  Maybe they were, but she didn’t like to admit to it, especially to a police officer. She knew how they looked—how they all looked. She saw the boys differently than anyone else did, though. She saw the little round cherub faces that they used to have. She felt her cheeks heat at his directness.

  “So we aren’t going to politely pretend that everything is hunky-dory?” she asked. “We can’t rewind a little bit there and let me have this?”

  “Not tonight,” he said with a shrug. “I’m not going to judge, though. I used to be a lot like them.”

  That did help a little bit. She’d called it before—sensed he was just like her brothers on some level. Maybe he’d be less inclined to teach them a lesson legally, or was she being too hopeful there?

  “I could see that,” she replied.

  “Yeah?” He laughed. “Well, I turned out all right—” He paused, grimaced. “Besides being here for disciplinary action, of course. But that’s complicated.”

  “How much like them were you?” she asked cautiously.

  “I stole a car...my uncle’s. I was arrested for it. My dad—the cop—called my uncle and talked it out with him. He dropped the charges. It was pretty serious. I could have ended up in juvenile hall.”

  “Ouch.” Yes, it sounded like he did understand. “Getting arrested—did it do you any good?”

  He was silent for a moment, then shrugged. “It certainly scared me straight.”

  Lily glanced at the clock on the wall. They’d need to leave soon to get to her aunt’s place on time, and this conversation was getting more personal. What was it about Bryce that kept her slipping right back into that unprofessional territory?

  “You ready?” he asked.

  “I just need to put the car seat into the back of the car,” she said. “And I’ll drive.”

  She felt more comfortable driving—it kept her in control, and right now she needed that.

  As Lily turned toward the door, her sandaled foot hit something wet on the hardwood floor. Her heel slipped, and her heart flew to her throat. Just as the thought sparked in her mind that she was about to fall, a solid arm shot out and clamped around her rib cage, catching her in one arm, with the other broad hand placed protectively over the baby’s back. Bryce pulled her hard against his side, and she could feel the solidness of his ribs against hers.

  Lily sucked in a surprised breath and looked up, past that strong shoulder and into Bryce’s face, which was now only inches from her own. She could see the roughness of his stubble, the tiny lines around his eyes, and could feel the heat of his breath against her cheek.

  “You okay?” His voice was low and warm, and his grip on her loosened as she regained her balance.

  “Yes, I’m fine. Thank you.” She looked down at the baby, who didn’t seemed the least fazed by their near fall.

  “Good.” He released them then, and her waist felt suddenly cool where his arm had been. She looked over to find his eyes pinned to her, his expression revealing nothing of what he was feeling underneath. She was struck by how quickly he’d moved and by how easily he’d caught her.

  She let out a shaky breath.

  “Let’s go then,” she said quickly, unwilling to admit to herself how nice it had been to fall into those strong arms. She couldn’t get used to that. He was helpful, he seemed genuine, he was willing to look into Aaron for them...but he was also very temporary, and he knew too much. She should at least try to regain some professional composure with this man. He was her first guest, after all, and she wanted to do this right.

  Unfortunately, she was bringing him to a family dinner to investigate her aunt’s fiancé. “Doing it right” had pretty much sailed. She might have to start fresh with the next guest, and just accept that things had gotten out of hand with Bryce from the start.

  Chapter Four

  Even though the baby was in a rear-facing car seat, Bryce kept looking back to check on her. From her silence, he concluded she was sleeping. He didn’t have to worry; she was most certainly Lily’s job now, but Piglet had snuggled her way into the back of his mind. Maybe it was how he’d met her at the police station,
or her clear preference for him his first night at Lily’s place, but he still couldn’t shake a certain feeling of responsibility for the kid.

  “Is she sleeping?” Lily asked.

  “I think so.”

  The sun was low in the sky as they drove down a rural gravel road, the shadows stretching long and slow like taffy. The road ran straight, going up and down unending hills so that they went from golden evening sunlight to chilly shadow, and then back up again. The mailboxes at the end of driveways out here didn’t have numbers, they had names: the Wetsteins, the Millgroves, the Burnetts.

  Lily leaned back in the driver’s seat, comfortable and relaxed. She tugged her fingers through her hair, pulling it away from her eyes, and Bryce looked quickly away. She was pretty in a way that seemed to draw him in—her milky skin, those sky-blue eyes, her long lashes—and he had to keep some firm control on his impulses. He wasn’t here to get attached, and just because he’d landed in Lily’s B and B with nothing but time on his hands didn’t mean that he had the luxury of letting himself feel.

  Lily had tried to back off to more professional territory this evening, and he hadn’t complied. That had been selfish on his part, but he found himself liking this view into her life. She was tender but tough, and he’d realized that her opening up the way she had was comforting. She was one of the few people who hadn’t treated him like a live grenade since he’d punched Leroy.

  She obviously didn’t need to look for names or numbers to know where she was. Still, it felt a bit odd to be driven somewhere. Back in Fort Collins, Bryce was the one who did the driving. Being single, that stood to reason, but he also drove his mother for errands from time to time, and when he took a woman out, he did the picking up. So he felt awkward in the passenger seat tonight.

  Not that he minded. Lily was the kind of woman who didn’t seem to want the extra help. She’d struggled getting the baby’s car seat strapped into the back, and she’d downright refused any offer of help from him.

  “I got it!” she kept calling from the depths of the vehicle whenever he offered a hand. “No, no, I’m good. I got it!”

  And eventually, she did get it, so who was he to complain? But it took a full four minutes. He’d timed it on his watch.

  Her aunt’s drive was on the left, and it opened up onto a large front yard that appeared to be lined on one side by raspberry bushes. A large tree loomed over the house in the backyard, visible over the roof, but the front yard was open and clear. Two vehicles were parked in front of a sagging garage, and Lily parked behind them.

  “Here we are,” she said, sucking in a breath. “Aaron comes across as a nice guy. You’ll probably like him.”

  “Feeling guilty?” he asked with a wry smile.

  “A little.” She winced. “I do hope there’s nothing wrong with him. I want to be clear about that. I don’t have anything against him personally—”

  “I know,” he said. “I get it. I’ll be discreet. Is that them?”

  An older woman came out onto the front porch. She was rounded and short, and wore a fifties-style dress. Her hair was dyed a color that he could only describe as “very brown,” and behind her a slim man stood with his hands in his pockets. He had more faded brown hair with a little gray at the temples. His clothes looked faded, too, as if all of him had gone through the wash one too many times.

  “That’s them,” Lily said, and pushed open the door. “Hi, Auntie!” she called.

  Bryce got out of the car and came around as Lily pulled open the door to the backseat and crawled in after the car seat.

  “Do you want a hand with that?” Aunt Clarisse asked.

  “No, she’s got it,” Bryce said, shooting the older woman a wry smile. “We’ve been through this once already.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Clarisse said, leaning forward and giving him a firm handshake. She eyed him speculatively, and Bryce noted the irony here. They’d all be trying to figure one another out tonight, it appeared. “This is Aaron.”

  The man stepped forward and shook Bryce’s hand—his handshake a little weaker than his fiancée’s. He smiled and dipped his head in a wordless hello.

  Lily emerged with a still-sleeping Emily, and Clarisse paused to heave a breathy sigh over the infant.

  “Isn’t she sweet...” Clarisse planted a hand over her heart. “Does my heart good! Babies are as good for you as fiber.”

  Bryce smothered a laugh and exchanged a humored look with Lily. Clarisse didn’t look like the kind of woman who needed much rescuing either, and he could see why Lily had such a special bond with her aunt. Besides the difference in their coloring—Lily being fair and blonde next to her aunt’s brilliant brunette—he could see a family resemblance. They both carried themselves with a determined forward launch.

  “Well, come on in,” Clarisse called over her shoulder, and Aaron put an arm around her as they made their way back up the steps and into the house.

  Bryce glanced down at Lily, and he could tell that the car seat was heavy. She held it a little away from her body to keep from bumping the sleeping baby, and he reached out and took the handle from her.

  “I’ve got it—” she began, and he flashed her a grin. She released the car seat and smiled gratefully. “Thanks.”

  “After you,” he said, and she stepped in front of him to go through the front door, her floral dress swinging lightly around her calves. He came inside close behind her, and as his eyes adjusted to the indoor lighting, he looked down at the sleeping infant. Emily heaved a tiny sigh in her sleep, and he felt a wave of protectiveness.

  He tried to push it off—he shouldn’t be feeling this—and as if in an answer to an unsaid prayer, Lily turned and took the car seat from him. He released it quickly and stood back as she unbuckled the straps and lifted the sleeping baby out.

  “Oh my...” Clarisse said. “Isn’t she precious? I’ve just got to snuggle this one. There’s no getting around it...”

  Aaron peeked over Clarisse’s shoulder at the baby and smiled. “She’s cute, all right.”

  “Congratulations on the wedding,” Bryce said, and Aaron turned toward him.

  “Thank you. We’re really excited.” The other man came across the room to where Bryce stood. “Two weeks and counting now.”

  “So how did you meet?” he asked.

  “Online. We were both on a Christian dating site.”

  It stood to reason, actually. A lot of people met that way these days. Before Bryce could say anything more, Aaron added, “We weren’t exactly clear about your relationship to Lily...”

  Was Aaron actually questioning him about his intentions? Bryce couldn’t help but smile. Aaron looked innocuous enough, his brow furrowed in mild concern or mild confusion, Bryce couldn’t tell which. But mild seemed to describe every inch of this man.

  “I’m her boarder for two weeks,” Bryce said.

  “And she brought you for a family function?” Aaron’s pale eyebrows went up. “Clarisse is thinking that you might be something more, and Lily isn’t ready to say yet.”

  Bryce inwardly grimaced. Of course, that was what this looked like, and he was a little embarrassed to have been set on the defensive so quickly by the man he was supposed to be investigating. However, he couldn’t let Aaron get suspicious, so he said, “Nothing like that. I’m going to be in town for work reasons for a couple of weeks, and she felt sorry for me. I’m used to a faster pace in the city. She says she’s not great with professional boundaries, and here I am.”

  There was more to it, but the statement was still true. He’d have to put this into his notebook—fakery at its finest.

  Aaron met his gaze for a moment, then nodded. “Ah. I see.”

  Did he see? Bryce glanced across the room to where the women were settled on the sofa. Clarisse had Emily in her arms, and Lily sat with her legs stretched
out in front of her, ankles crossed. Lily’s gaze flickered up toward him, and she met his look with a smile.

  “How has she been sleeping?” Clarisse asked.

  “Pretty well,” Lily replied. “When she’s really fussy, she seems to like Bryce.”

  “Oh?” Clarisse’s eyebrows went up in the same way Aaron’s had. “That’s very sweet.”

  “I’ll be easily replaced with a pacifier, I’m sure,” Bryce said quickly, but as the words came out, his chest constricted a little with regret.

  Lord, I have to stop this, he prayed silently. It wasn’t a request so much as an acknowledgment of his situation. He wouldn’t be here long. But then, in the broader picture, this was temporary for Lily, too, and that baby girl needed someone she could rely on until she had a home. He and Lily would simply have to do—stand-ins until a proper family could be rustled up. Still, getting attached wasn’t smart.

  Clarisse looked ready to ask more questions, but then she looked down at the baby. “It looks like someone could use a new diaper,” she murmured, as if the “someone” in this equation wasn’t obvious.

  “Here,” Lily said with a low laugh. She took the baby back. “I’ll take care of it.”

  “Feel free to use the guest room,” Clarisse called after her. Lily disappeared down the hallway, her voice filtering back to them as she crooned to the baby about the state of her diaper with promises for a bright, clean and snuggly future.

  It all felt very domestic, and a little too comfortable for Bryce’s liking. Obviously, he needed to fit in if he was going to get some useful information out of Aaron, but the lines with Lily seemed to be blurring. Could he blame her—with her questionable ability to keep personal and professional separate? Or was it him—wishing for things he knew he couldn’t have? This ridiculously slow town had started to grow on him already.

  Bryce noticed the diaper bag at his feet, and he picked it up. “I guess I’d better take this.”