The Widow's Bachelor Bargain

by Teresa Southwick

  Danielle had stopped crying, but she was taking deep, shuddering breaths that would tug at the hardest heart. Sloan just couldn’t leave her like this.

  He walked over to where Maggie was working on the other side of the island. “I have no idea where any of this stuff goes, but maybe she’ll let me hold her.”

  Maggie shook her head. “She’s really cranky. A very bad night. I think she’s teething. But we were almost out of everything. I had to take her with me.”

  Sloan wondered if Maggie wasn’t used to accepting help or if there was a chip on her shoulder about proving to the world she could do it alone. Either way, he was here right now and wouldn’t leave without at least trying to give her a hand.

  “I can see that she’s cranky and I’m not afraid.”

  “I can’t ask you to do that, Sloan.”

  “You didn’t.” He held out his arms to the kid. “What do you say, Shorty? Want to give your mom a break?”

  “I don’t think she’ll go for it.”

  “Maybe not.” He kept his arms extended while the child thought it over. Finally, hesitantly, Danielle leaned toward him and he took her. “What do you know.”

  “Wow.” Maggie looked surprised, then determined. “I’ll hurry and get everything put away so we don’t keep you very long.”

  “No rush.”

  “But you have to get back to work,” she pointed out.

  “A few minutes one way or the other won’t make much difference.” He walked around, and the toddler’s slight weight felt surprisingly good in his arms. Her face was wet, but she sighed, and the deep, hiccuping breaths stopped. “Feeling better, kiddo?”

  She rubbed a chubby fist beneath her runny nose then dragged it over the front of his shirt. A very expensive tissue, he thought. When she calmed down, he set her on the great-room floor beside the toy basket pushed beneath an end table. He rummaged through it, looking for the talking thing, the one with the button beside an animal. When it was pushed, a voice named the critter and made the correct creature sound. He’d seen Maggie do this with her.

  He pushed the cow and Danielle immediately said, “Moo.”

  “Right. Good job.” He pushed the frog.

  “Bet,” she said.

  “Pretty close. Ribbet,” he told her.

  She pushed the lion and made a roaring sound, or the two-year-old version of it. He sat on the floor and she plopped herself into his lap and held the toy out to him. It didn’t take a PhD in parenting to realize what she wanted.

  Sloan touched the horse and said, “Horse.”

  She tried to repeat the word and did a pretty good job. Then, plain as day, she said, “Cookie.”

  “Even I understood that,” he said to Maggie.

  “Of course.” She glanced over her shoulder after shoving a box of cereal into a cupboard. “And she’s very accomplished at saying no, too.”

  “Cookie,” the little girl said again.

  “You’ll spoil your lunch, baby girl,” her mother said. “And they’re messy.”

  “If it was up to me,” he said to the child, “you could have a whole bag. Fortunately, your mother is not a pushover.” He looked at Maggie. “What do you say? Maybe just one for putting that little meltdown behind her?”

  “Is that all it takes?” She was shaking her head at the same time she smiled at him. “A few tears and a woman can have whatever she wants?”

  “You know how it is. Men are completely helpless when a female cries.” He met her teasing gaze. “And I’m not ashamed to admit it.”

  “Cookie,” Danielle said impatiently.

  “I was sort of hoping she’d forget,” he admitted.

  Maggie laughed. “You are an optimist, aren’t you? When it comes to c-o-o-k-i-e-s—” she spelled the word “—my daughter has single-minded determination that is legendary.”

  “Okay.” He looked at the little girl, who was staring back at him with an expression he interpreted as expecting him to go to battle for her. “It’s up to your mom, kid.”

  “No, it’s up to you,” Maggie said. “If I give her one, that pretty white shirt of yours won’t be so pretty and white anymore.”

  “Well—” he looked at the stain already streaking his chest “—she already used it to wipe her nose. A few crumbs can hardly do too much more damage.”

  “For the record, I’m sorry about your shirt and I will wash it.” Maggie sighed. “But if you think it can’t get much worse, you really are a rookie.”

  “No big deal on the shirt. My point is that I have to change it anyway. So I vote in favor of a c-o-o-k-i-e.”

  “Okay, then.” She opened the brand-new bag of chocolate-chip cookies on the counter beside her, then reached in to grab one. Absently, she picked up the bag and walked over to him. She held up the treat and said to her daughter, “What’s this, baby girl?”

  “Cookie!” Happily she snatched it out of her mother’s hand and shoved it in her mouth.

  That made Sloan a little nervous. “Is she going to choke on that?”

  “It scared me, too, the first time, but she’ll be fine.” She held out the bag to him. “Cookie?”

  “Thanks.” He reached in and took one.

  There was an odd expression on Maggie’s face. “Don’t look now, but your playboy image is taking a direct hit. If they could see you eating cookies with a two-year-old, what would your women say?”

  “It’s not so much what they would say as what they might do,” he said.

  “No more scantily clad babes hiding in your room?”

  “If that were the case, I’d put a picture on social media myself. But me with a child would ratchet up the marriage minded, and speculation would run rampant about the end of my eligible-bachelor days. Stalking would be off the chart.”

  “Really?” Maggie looked genuinely surprised.

  “Yes. Do you have any idea how inconvenient and annoying it is to have a stranger show up in your bed uninvited?”

  “So you want to personally invite your women into your bed?”

  Sloan would personally invite Maggie there in a heartbeat, and the instantaneous thought sent a sliver of need straight through him. Clearly she was joking or he would have extended an invitation right then and there. Then Danielle wiped a grubby hand over his chest, leaving a trail of chocolate and crumbs. That brought him down to earth. Even if Maggie was willing to accept an invitation into his bed, there was no way anything could happen with this little one to take care of.

  Oddly enough, that didn’t bother him. And it wasn’t his bachelor-playboy image he was concerned about. He realized how much he liked being a part of this scenario, entertaining a child and hanging out with her mother. It filled up a part of his soul that he’d put aside for a long time. Since his divorce, he’d consciously avoided personal complications. After a failed marriage, the last thing he wanted was to get serious about a woman who was still in love with the man she’d lost.

  He needed work and lots of it to focus more completely on the resort project. No more thinking about kissing Maggie.

  Or inviting her into his bed.

  Chapter Five

  Maggie thought she had put that kiss with Sloan into perspective and had her life back under control until he had come to the house unexpectedly a couple of days ago. It had been an awful morning with a fussy toddler, but she’d had business responsibilities. Things needed to be done, whether Danielle had wanted to come along or not. And she definitely had not wanted to.

  After the grocery store, Maggie had had one nerve left from the nonstop crying all the way home. She’d never expected Sloan to come riding in like a white knight to the rescue, but white knight was a fitting description for a man who hauled in all those grocery bags in half the time it would have taken her. And she didn’t thin
k it was possible for him to be any sweeter to her daughter than he’d been that day. Watching the two of them was heartwarming, and at the same time it made her deeply sad that her husband had never had a chance to spend time with his daughter.

  The problem wasn’t Sloan; it was her. The threads of her life were delicately intertwined, but they fit together and were working. If one of those strings came loose and pulled free, it would all come apart. She was on an even keel and trying to stay that way. She didn’t need a man coming in to unbalance her canoe, to mix a metaphor.

  Her B and B was Sloan’s temporary home and he had every right to come and go. So the lesson from his drop-in was to have her guard up at the house. In town she could probably avoid him. He was working, as was she, and the odds of their schedules intersecting were slim.

  Still, she was vigilant on her way down Main Street from her office to the Grizzly Bear Diner, where she planned to meet her friend Jill Stone for lunch. Some would call it supporting her competition, but the two eating establishments provided very different dining experiences.

  She walked into the diner and didn’t see anyone at the podium displaying a sign that read, Please Wait to be Seated. The hostess must be busy somewhere else at the moment. Glancing into the area with booths and tables, she didn’t see her friend, either. It would be hard to miss Jill’s red hair, so obviously Maggie was the first to arrive.

  She heard her cell phone ring and fished it out of her purse. “Hello.”

  “Maggie? It’s Jill. I’m so sorry, but I can’t make it. The school called just as I was on my way out the door to meet you. C.J. is sick and I have to pick him up.”

  C.J. was Jill’s ten-year-old son. She also had a daughter about Danielle’s age. Maggie knew how hard it was when a child was sick, and suspected it made no difference whether the child in question was two or ten.

  “I’m so sorry to hear that,” she said.

  “I feel awful standing you up like this. But he’s running a fever and has a sore throat. It came on suddenly, because he was fine when he went to school this morning.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Jill. We’ll put another date on the calendar when he’s feeling better. I hope that’s soon.”

  “Me, too,” the worried mom said. “I might just drop in at the clinic and let Adam look him over.”

  Adam Stone was her husband, a family-practice doctor at Mercy Medical Clinic here in town. He’d adopted the boy after marrying Jill. Come to think of it, her friend had been a single mom when the doctor had rented the apartment she owned that was upstairs from hers. The two had fallen in love, but any similarity between Jill’s situation and Maggie’s ended there.

  C.J.’s dad had abandoned him and Danielle’s father had died. If given the choice, Danny would have devoted himself to his child. Since he couldn’t, Maggie would devote herself to the little girl enough for two parents.

  “I think it’s a good idea for C.J. to see a doctor,” Maggie said. “If only to reassure you that there’s nothing to worry about.”

  “It’s very handy being married to a doctor,” Jill said.

  “I bet it is.” Maggie laughed. “Don’t let me keep you. Do me a favor. In a day or so give me a call and let me know how C.J. is doing.”

  “Will do. ’Bye, Maggie.”

  “Take care.” Maggie pressed the stop button on her phone and turned to leave the diner. No point in staying. She would grab a sandwich at the café and eat it at her desk. Even though she’d been craving a burger and fries.

  She reached out to push open the door, but it moved before she touched it. Sloan Holden walked in, backing her up several steps.

  “This is a surprise,” he said, smiling. “A nice one.”

  Her heart rate increased, just to let her know she thought it was nice, too. And ironic. Just minutes ago she’d been thinking that in town it would be much easier to avoid him. Not so much, apparently.

  “I was just leaving,” she said.

  He looked at his watch. “Have you eaten already?”

  “No. I was supposed to meet a friend, but she couldn’t make it. Her son is sick.”

  “That’s too bad.”

  They were standing a foot away from the hostess podium and a female voice said, “Two for lunch?”

  Sloan hesitated just a moment before saying, “Yes.”

  Before Maggie could say they weren’t together, he took her elbow and steered her after the hostess, who was leading the way. The next thing she knew, they were being seated at a secluded booth in the back.

  “Brandon will be your server today. If there’s anything I can get you, please don’t hesitate to ask.” She smiled at both of them. “Enjoy your lunch.”

  “Thanks.” Sloan looked at her across the table. “This is unexpected, in a good way. I thought I was going to have to eat alone.”

  “You don’t have to do this.”

  “What? Eat?” His mouth turned up at the corners. “Yeah, I kind of do.”

  “No. I meant you don’t have to eat with me. Or keep me company. I’ll just grab a sandwich and eat in my office.”

  “Oh, come on. You were planning to eat with someone. Why not me?”

  So many reasons. “You might be planning to work.” Since he wasn’t carrying a briefcase or anything that looked remotely like work, it was a pretty weak excuse.

  “I was planning to sit at the counter and chat up whoever was behind it. But a quiet booth with you is a lot more appealing.” His dark brown eyes took on a pleading expression. “Come on. Do a lonely bachelor a favor. Be spontaneous. Have lunch with me.”

  “Lonely bachelor, my as-paragus,” she teased. “If you’re alone, it’s only because this is Blackwater Lake and it’s off the radar for your women.”

  “I’m going to ignore the ‘my women’ part of that statement and take the rest of it as affirmative that you’ll join me for lunch.”

  “Okay. It’s a yes. But only because I was looking forward to the Mama Bear burger combo.”

  “Good.” He looked around, taking in the decor. Pictures of bears on the walls. Wallpaper with black paw prints on a cream background. The wild-animal ambience had everything but a stuffed grizzly in the corner. “This place has a lot of local color.”

  “That it does.”

  A nice-looking young man with brown hair and blue eyes who was in his late teens walked up with menus. “Hi. I’m Brandon and I’ll be your server today.”

  Sloan held up a hand to stop him from leaving the menus. “I think we’re ready to order.”

  “What can I get you?”

  “I’ll have a Mama Bear burger combo. Diet cola with lemon,” Maggie said.

  “Make mine a Papa Bear combo and coffee. Black.”

  “Coming right up,” Brandon said.

  Sloan watched the young man walk away and there were questions in his eyes. “Shouldn’t he be in school?”

  “He graduated from Blackwater Lake High School in June. He’s taking some online classes while working to save money for college so he can go away in the fall.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “His dad is a carpenter and works for McKnight Construction, not to be confused with McKnight Automotive where your cousin’s fiancée works. Brandon’s mom works at the grocery store and comes into the café. I hear things,” she explained. “And it’s a small town. So everyone hears things.”

  “I guess it’s hard to keep a secret around here.”

  “Yes.”

  But no one knew Maggie’s secret because she kept it to herself. No one knew Danny had wanted kids right after they’d married but Maggie had refused. She’d wanted to wait until his National Guard commitment was fulfilled. But she’d gotten pregnant and it hadn’t been planned. That was the reason she had Danielle. And thank goodness she did. Bes
t mistake ever. Or she would have nothing left of Danny.

  “This town is very different from my stomping grounds.”

  “How?” She unwrapped eating utensils from the napkin and spread it in her lap. “Everything you do ends up in a newspaper, which means even more people know things.”

  “True. So tell me. Since there are no small-town tabloids, how does information spread in Blackwater Lake? Jungle drums?”

  “Almost.” She laughed. “But it works pretty much the way it does in the big city. Phone. Social media. Word of mouth.”

  His eyes darkened as it settled on her mouth. “Don’t look now, but you’re having a better time than you would have eating alone in your office.”

  “Says who? I really like my office and what I do.”

  “Me, too,” he allowed. “But as I told you once before, everyone needs a break. Recharge your batteries. Let your hair down. Have a little fun.”

  “If you say so.”

  He studied her. “What do you have against having fun?”

  “Nothing.”

  “That’s not the impression I get,” he said.

  Although she had very little time for it, Maggie was completely open to having fun. As long as that fun didn’t include a relationship. Maybe running into him was actually a sign. A good thing. They’d never talked about that kiss and probably should. Might be a good idea to clarify it, make sure he understood that she had boundaries.

  “Believe me, Sloan, I like having fun as much as the next person. But...”

  “What?” he asked when she hesitated.

  “As long as it doesn’t include kissing.” Before he could say anything, she added, “I take full responsibility for what happened that night. What I said comes under the heading of not thinking it through.”

  “Your sense of accountability is extraordinarily acute. Last time I checked, it takes two to make a kiss.” He met her gaze and there was amusement in his. “I believe I initiated that kiss and no one twisted my arm.”