by Julie Miller
“Hey, sweetie.” Dwight bent down for the kiss she pressed to his cheek before returning the favor. “Trent.”
“Mr. Powers.” He liked the confident way the young man shook his hand. “Hey, I got a lead on a sweet ’63 Mercedes on the Internet. I’d be happy to show you sometime. I know how much you’re into the classics.”
Classics. Meaning old, no doubt, to the teenager’s way of thinking. “That’d be fine. I’ll take you up on that sometime.”
“Cool.” Trent slipped past him to the front door, which he opened for Katie. “See you later, Mr. P.”
“Bye, Dwight.”
“Mr. P.?” Dwight frowned as the door closed behind them. He loosened his tie and unbuttoned his collar as he headed into the living room.
A blur of blue-and-white zipped by him across the floor. “Whoa.” Dwight smiled as he hurried after Tyler and scooped him up into his arms. “Where are you headin’ off to, big guy?”
Dwight smoothed his soft, brown hair as he carried him to the playpen and set him inside. He knelt down beside the eight-month-old and got a good look at the Kansas City Royals shirt he was wearing. “Baseball?” He made a face and Tyler buzzed his lips in delight. “Has Cooper been telling you stories about spring training again? Yeah, yeah, I know that look.” He tapped Tyler’s tummy with three playful jabs of his fist. “Hya. Hya. Hya.” Tyler giggled and Dwight grinned right along with him as if he understood every sound the little boy made. “That’s right. Heavyweight title bout this weekend. You and me in front of the TV. Yeah.”
The spicy scent of his wife entering the room behind him made Dwight smile even more. “Heavyweight title bout? You’re not going to teach him how to box, are you, Dwight?”
Dwight turned as he stood and pulled Maddie into his arms for a kiss. “I taught you, didn’t I? Broke Fairfax’s nose in one punch. Don’t think I’ve ever been prouder of you. Well, except for that day you testified against him and Roberta Hays in court. Or maybe the day you let me give you a real wedding ring.”
Maddie thumped him in the shoulder. “I told you you weren’t any good at sweet talk.”
He stroked her cheek and let his fingers settle into the copper silk of her hair. “You said you wanted me to always tell you the truth. Never sugarcoat it.” He glanced over her shoulder toward the door. “Speaking of truths, is Katie dating that guy?”
“That guy? It’s Trent Dixon. You like him.”
Irrelevant. He knew what he liked to do with Maddie when they got a chance to go out on a date. “It’s a school night. Should they be going out?”
She smoothed her hand along his tie. “Calm down, Mr. Worrywart. They have play practice for the spring musical. They’ll be home by ten-thirty.” She stepped back and took his hand. “Besides, you and I need a few minutes alone by ourselves.”
Dwight liked that idea. He followed her into the privacy of the kitchen. “Only a few minutes?”
Eight months ago, he couldn’t have imagined having a family. Having a life that meant something. Having love. Maddie McCallister Powers had brought a lightness into his world with her smiles and backbone and loving heart.
When she turned to speak, he snuck the opportunity to kiss her neck, her cheek, to claim her lips. He backed her into a counter and aligned her more fully with his body, letting his hands travel from her hair to her hips and back as they shared a kiss that made him forget the length of his day and the forty-fourth birthday coming up next month.
But Maddie wedged her fingers between their lips and pushed him back with a tender smile. “To talk, Dwight. We need to talk.”
“Oy.” He held up his hands and stepped away, reining in his desires. “I’ve been talking all day.” He occupied himself by sneaking a look at the spaghetti she was fixing for dinner. “So how was school?”
She batted his hand away from the loaf of bread she’d been cutting. “Fine. Finished Beowulf with my ninth-graders today. We get to hit grammar next.”
“Sounds like fun.” He moved on to the salad.
“How was court?”
“The preliminary hearing on the Baby Jane Doe suspect hit a snag. The judge called a recess while the defense lines up a couple more witnesses.” The salad got boring and he dipped his head to steal another kiss. “Are we done talking yet?”
Her steeling sigh as she stared at the center of his chest put his libido on hold. “Maddie?”
She raised her gaze to his before pushing him toward a kitchen chair. “I think you’d better sit down for this one.”
Dwight was suddenly as serious and worried as he’d ever been. He pulled her into his lap. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. But something very weird is about to happen.”
“What? C’mon, Red. You can tell me anything.”
“I know.” She caressed his face and offered a smile that didn’t quite reassure him. “I think that’s one of the first ways I knew you were someone special. I could talk to you—and argue—and not get all tongue-tied with shyness.”
“You’re stalling.”
Her hand settled atop his shoulders. Damn. Those pretty blue eyes were sober enough to scare him. “When our child is born, he’s going to be younger than Tyler, who’s practically like a grandson to us. That’ll be a little awkward, don’t you think?”
“We talked about this. Our family isn’t traditional. But it’s my family and I love you guys, no matter what.”
“And we love you. I love you.”
“So if we have a child, he’ll be younger than Tyler. It’ll give them something cool to talk about at show-and-tell.”
“Don’t be so dense, counselor. I said when, not if.” She touched her hand to her abdomen and Dwight’s stomach turned inside out. “Our nontraditional family is about to get a little bigger.”
“You’re…? We’re…?”
Her face bloomed with color and her beautiful smile told him everything he needed to know.
“Yeah!” He picked her up and spun her around. He set her down and looked in amazement at the gift of love she’d brought back into his life. “I love you, Maddie. I love Tyler and Katie and I’m going to love this baby, too. I’m glad you stood up to me that day at the Fourth Precinct. I’m glad you stayed alive when Joe Rinaldi wanted you dead. I’m glad you—”
“Dwight.” She brushed her fingers across his lips.
“What?”
“Shut up.” She turned and backed him into the counter. She looped her arms around his neck and gave him the smile of all smiles. “Just shut up and kiss me.”
ISBN: 978-1-4268-6758-3
SEARCH AND SEIZURE
Copyright © 2006 by Julie Miller
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Julie Miller, Search and Seizure
