by A. C. Arthur
“I don’t care what these new formulas call for, I still do it the old-fashioned way—boiling my water first.” She smiled. “Never could manage breast-feeding, especially not with twins.”
Ava smiled in return and continued to watch curiously until Morgan returned to her seat and picked up her glass.
“Does Gray want more children?”
Morgan choked on the water she’d just sipped.
“Not now,” Ava said, reaching to hand Morgan a napkin. “I’m sorry, I should have been clearer. I just mean overall, does he want a big family like his parents had?”
“No,” Morgan said, shaking her head. “Gray doesn’t want any of the things his parents had. Neither does Gage or their youngest sister, Gia. Garrek, Gemma and Gen think differently about what happened.”
“That’s Genevieve, right?”
Morgan nodded. “They used to call her Vivi when they were younger, but after their mother passed, Gray said she wanted to be called Gen. It was too hard to hear the nickname her mother had given her, I suppose.”
From all her research, Ava had surmised that the Taylor children suffered traumatically from the early events of their lives. A part of her ached for them.
“When Theodor left, the siblings were emotionally split down the middle. Three of them sided with Olivia, while the other three held back from taking a side at all. Gage and Gia stuck close as the two youngest, but from what Gray has told me, they were adamant that their father never be forgiven for what he did to their family.”
“That must have been hard,” Ava said, thinking of Gage.
“You know about the Taylors of Temptation, don’t you? You would have looked into Gage’s past before you hired him. Isn’t that how it works?”
Morgan was a schoolteacher, but she asked questions like a trained investigator. Not overtly like a police interrogation, but with an easy flow that garnered the information she wanted. Ava had only to decide whether Morgan’s inquisitiveness meant she was a friend or foe in the quest to get the contract signed.
“I did,” Ava replied. Again, she was telling a partial truth. She’d only looked into Gage’s past a few weeks ago. “But nothing told of the emotion. I mean, there’s the story of what happened and that’s it. The allegiances, the toll this entire situation took on this family was not easily surmised in any of the stories I read.”
“It can’t be,” Morgan said with a shake of her head. “Their grief is real and raw, and it lives inside them every day. Not just with the death of their parents, but also with reliving the demise of their family. That’s what hurt them most. And at the same time, it’s what holds them together.”
“I understand,” Ava said.
“Do you? Because if you do, you’ll know that falling in love is not going to be easy for Gage. But when he does, he’s going to fall with all his heart. Are you ready for that?”
“What? Why are you asking me that? I’m just here for a—”
“For a writing retreat, I know,” Morgan said with a knowing look. “Of all the places in the world, you picked this town. And you picked it after you’d been working with Gage. I’ve seen how the two of you look at each other. At dinner on my deck that first night, and again at the wine festival when we finally showed up.”
“Morgan, I think you’re mistaken.”
Morgan shook her head. “I don’t think I am. But, to be fair, I hope you’re getting lots of writing done while you’re here.”
The sound of crying poured into the room, and both women stared at the baby monitor sitting on the counter near the refrigerator.
“Duty calls,” Morgan said cheerily. “I’ll be right back.”
Ava nodded, and the moment she was alone she let her head fall forward to rest on the cool surface of the island. She groaned with her eyes closed as she replayed the conversation. Morgan wasn’t buying her being here for a writer’s retreat. Was that good or bad? Was she going to tell Gray? And if she did, how was Gage going to react when he found out she’d been lying to him and his family?
“Well, look who stepped out of her writing lair.”
Ava wanted to groan again. She wanted to slink out of this kitchen and take herself back to LA as quickly as possible.
“Hi!” she said instead, in a voice that was way too happy for the way she was actually feeling.
“Haven’t seen you out and about in a few days,” Gage said while walking farther into the kitchen.
“Ah, no. I mean, I’ve been out. Just trying to get some writing done. But I do come out and walk around town. I like seeing the sights and the people.”
She was babbling, so she snapped her lips closed and stared at him instead. He looked good. Of course he did. Gage always looked good. Jeans and polo shirts had never actually appealed to her before, but on him, they were hot.
“That’s great. I’ve been sort of busy, too.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. Don’t sound so surprised.” He chuckled as he took a bottled water out of the refrigerator and opened it.
“Well, you are on vacation, right? And your fast Playboy car has been heard zooming on the streets around town. Otis told me that.” Ava smiled at the recollection.
Otis had come to her room with a tray of lemonade and Nana Lou’s sugar cookies that day. He made a point of visiting her while she was writing, always bringing snacks and tidbits of town gossip. He was a thoughtful but nosy man, and she liked him.
“Fast Playboy car, huh? For the record, it’s a Jaguar XE, and she is pretty sweet when she gets going,” he said before taking a drink.
Ava could watch him for days. Whether he was falling on his butt during a volleyball game, or lounging on a blanket in a park, he was very easy on the eyes. And she liked the way he looked back at her.
“You and your women,” she said with a smirk.
“Hey, Gage,” Morgan said, returning to the kitchen with an adorable bundle of baby wrapped in a blue Baby Mickey blanket. “Where’s Gray? He said you two were meeting with a new doctor at the hospital and then he was coming home to relieve me.”
Gage set the bottle on the counter and went to Morgan, gingerly taking the baby from her arms.
“That’s why I’m here. To deliver a message. Gray’s tied up with an overseas conference call. He’d planned to take it here at the house, but his assistant confused the times, and he had to get on the call in one of the offices at the hospital.”
“But I have a meeting with Mrs. Camby about the Fall Festival. She’s been the chair of this festival for the last fifty years and never leaves her house for a meeting. I don’t really want to take the twins over there.”
Gage had been smiling down at baby Ryan, rubbing a finger over the child’s small hand. “JoEllen Camby?”
“Yes,” Morgan replied. She picked her cell phone up off the counter and started scrolling on it. “Wendy’s doing a double shift at the hospital today, and Granny has the food drive at the church. You remember Mrs. Camby?”
“Not really,” Gage answered. “She and my mother kept in touch after we left. I remember seeing cards come in the mail from her.”
“Oh,” Morgan said. “Well, you two are in luck because I need a babysitter.”
“A babysitter?” Ava asked.
Morgan nodded. “Yes. Two babies and two of you. I should only be gone an hour. Nana Lou is picking Jack and Lily up after school to take them to Movies and Games Day at the community center. So you won’t have to worry about them.”
Ava looked over at the baby Gage was holding. He looked pretty comfortable with the little boy in his arms. Ava, on the other hand, felt a wave of panic. “I’ve never watched a baby before.”
She’d never even held one.
“I’ll teach you.” Gage winked at her.
Morgan looked from him to Ava with a raised brow. “Uh-huh, right. Okay. So i
t’s time for them to be fed. Their next bottles are ready and on the counter over there. I’ll finish the new formula when I get back. Ryan always wants to go first. I’ve already changed him. Emma’s going to be up in a few minutes because she doesn’t let Ryan get too much of a head start. When she wakes up, just change her diaper. Gage, give Ava my cell number. Call me if there’s an emergency, and thank you both so much!”
Morgan was out of the kitchen in a blur of blue sweatpants and hoop earrings. Ava didn’t know what to say.
Gage came to stand in front of her. He was so close she could smell the baby scent of Ryan, even though she resisted the urge to look down at what she knew was a bundle of cuteness.
“First things first,” he said. “I don’t have women. My car is Jezebel, and my yacht is Seraphine. Those are the only ladies in my life.”
“Oh,” was all Ava could manage as a reply.
Then her cell phone rang, and Emma’s cry blasted through the intercom. Pulling the phone out of her back pants pocket, she frowned when she saw Jenner’s name on the screen.
“Okay, well, I guess I’d better get...ah, both of these,” she said and then repeated Morgan’s previous quick exit.
She needed to get away from the extremely comfortable-looking scene of Gage holding a baby and still looking sexy. And also of Gage telling her that he didn’t have a woman...so what was she?
* * *
Had she been jealous?
Gage walked to the counter and picked up one of the bottles. He removed the top and placed the nipple between Ryan’s small lips. This was his nephew, a new generation of Taylor children. That made Gage smile. Even while his mind circled back to the way Ava had said “you and your women.”
He’d felt the need to clarify the women in his life, and in doing so he realized how lonely it sounded. So he didn’t have a significant other. Was that such a big deal? She didn’t either—or did she? It occurred to him that between their sexual tête-à-têtes and declaring that there was nothing serious between them, they had never verified that they were each available for such dalliances.
They were adults; that’s what mattered. Any agreements they made were mature and thought out. There was nothing to regret.
Then why had he felt like a complete ass when she mentioned his women?
“What do I do now?” he asked, looking down into the innocent eyes of his nephew.
Of course Ryan didn’t answer, and after a few seconds Gage wondered why he was even asking. Not his nephew, but himself. There was nothing between him and Ava that he should be wondering about. Hadn’t he told himself that in the last few days when he’d been so immersed in the work at the hospital?
“What are you doing staying here so late? Shouldn’t you be out with Ava?” Gray had asked last night when they’d both been working late.
“No. I’m not the married one, big brother,” Gage had replied.
“Nope, your situation is worse,” Gray had stated. “It’s the dating phase. You have to work much harder on that part of a relationship.”
Gage had shaken his head so hard, his neck had ached. “Not in a relationship either.”
Gray’s head had tilted back as he’d laughed. “Come on, Gage. You’re smarter than that. Why else do you think she followed you here?”
“She didn’t follow me and we’re not dating,” he’d replied.
“If you say so. But you’ve been seen at the wine festival together and then again at the community center. We can call those outings, but that’s just a soft word for dates.”
“She’s...we...it’s not serious.” That was all that Gage had managed to come up with.
“Yet,” Gray had stated. “And don’t tell me you’re not the marrying kind because I know better. There’s no such thing. A man can commit when he wants to.”
“I’m perfectly capable of committing, Gray. I’ve been committed to my career for the last ten years. That’s not where Ava and I are headed,” he’d said with finality because he desperately needed to believe it.
Now, Gage wasn’t so sure.
When Ryan finished with his bottle and burped like a sixteen-year-old kid, Gage grabbed the second bottle and went upstairs to check on Ava.
Her cell phone was lying in the crib beside a pink Baby Minnie Mouse blanket that resembled the one wrapped around Ryan. She was leaning into the crib grumbling something as she pulled light green pants onto Emma. His niece gave a little cry, and Ava froze momentarily. He watched the rise and fall of her shoulders as she looked down at the baby and finally reached for the blanket. She wrapped her gently and then scooped her up into her arms.
“I don’t know what I’m doing, so I’m gonna need you to take it easy on me,” Ava whispered to Emma. “Now, we’re gonna forget about the mean man on the phone and go downstairs to get your bottle. How do you like that?”
Emma made a gurgling sound and Ava chuckled. “I figured you’d agree with that part. Okay, let’s go.”
“Who was the mean man on the phone?” he asked before he could consider whether or not he should.
“Oh.” She looked startled to see him.
She was holding Emma in one arm as she reached for the cell phone and slowly stuffed it into her back pocket.
“It was nobody,” she said with a slight shake of her head. “I mean, nobody important. Just work.”
Gage nodded, even while churning over the realization that he didn’t like the thought of some guy being mean to her. Add that to his great dislike of other guys holding Ava’s hand and Gage knew he was in trouble. He cleared his throat before speaking again.
“Well, I guess I won’t have to teach you how to change a diaper after all.”
“I figured it out,” she told him with a slight chuckle.
Gage held up the bottle he was holding.
“You brought her bottle?” Ava asked.
“I did,” he said. “Let’s sit here.”
The nursery was painted a very pale green with bold white stripes on one side, and pastel-colored balloons on the other. All the furniture in the room was white, including the matching gliders that faced a bay window, which opened to the front of the house.
He waited for Ava to sit before handing her the bottle. Then Gage took the seat next to her.
And there they sat for Gage didn’t know how long, rocking the babies and looking out the window.
She didn’t say a word and neither did he. Ryan was warm as Gage cuddled him in his arms. Beside him he could hear Ava making cooing sounds at Emma. It struck him then that this was a cozy scene. A scene he’d held in his mind for longer than he cared to admit.
His parents probably sat in this same room looking out the window all those years ago. And now, something clicked inside of Gage. It slipped into a place in his chest as if it had been the missing piece to a puzzle, and he almost sighed because it was finally where it belonged.
Just the way Theodor and Olivia probably had thirty years ago.
Chapter 7
“It’s just a leave of absence, Mortimer,” Gage said into the phone as he sat in the room he’d been occupying at Harper and Garrek’s house. “I’ll be back the first of the year.”
“I thought this was just a three-week vacation,” Mortimer Gogenheim replied. “What about your research? The grant?”
Gage had thought this all through after he’d left Gray’s house last night and returned to this room. He’d stayed up half the night thinking of nothing else.
“I’ll have weekly Skype calls with the research assistants. In addition, they’ll send me weekly reports. I’ll review everything, do my own analysis and decide what steps need to be taken next. We’re not close to any clinical testing, so me being out of the lab for another two months isn’t going to harm the research at all,” Gage assured his boss.
“My last day is the end of this week,” Mo
rtimer said. “I believe Ed planned to meet with all department staff before then. I told him you would be back because that’s what you told me when you left.”
Gage kept his gaze on the huge trees swaying with the wind just a few feet away from the window. Leaves drifted in the air before circling down to rest on the grass.
“There have been some new developments.” Gage cleared his throat. “Things relating to my father’s estate. I have to take care of them before I can return. If it’s necessary, I can call and speak with Rodenstein myself.”
Mortimer didn’t immediately respond.
“If there’s something else going on, you can tell me, Gage. Is this about Ed getting the chief position instead of you?”
“I’m not that petty, Mortimer. I’m a professional, always. And I’m committed to my job. I have been for the last ten years. Which is why requesting a leave of absence to deal with my father’s estate should not be an issue. But if it is, please let me know and I will deal with it accordingly.”
“This just isn’t like you,” Mortimer said before agreeing to let Dr. Rodenstein and the rest of the staff know that Gage was officially taking a leave of absence.
For the next few hours, Gage thought about Mortimer’s words. This wasn’t like him. Since the day he’d decided to become a doctor, Gage had put nothing else before achieving that goal. And really, he told himself, he wasn’t actually pushing his career aside this time. Designing and staffing the obstetrics and infertility research sections of the new Taylor Generational Wing at All Saints Hospital was an extension of his career. It was in his field and correlated perfectly with his work in New York. As such, in the last weeks, Gage had thrown himself wholeheartedly into the project.
He’d also spent more time with Ava Cannon than he had with any other woman, ever.
That thought reminded him of the text message he’d sent to her this morning, inviting her to dinner tonight. It also meant he had a lot to do before the time for said dinner arrived.
After packing the last of his clothes in the leather duffel bag he’d brought with him when he arrived in Temptation, Gage took the bag off the bed and stood in the room, looking around. It was a nice room in the old antebellum home that his father had left to Garrek, and that Harper was now restoring. The stately structure sat on multiple acres of luxurious land, and when finished, would be grand and gorgeous. Harper was really good at her job, even if Gage wasn’t a fan of the ornate antique furniture in this particular room.
