Their Second-Time Valentine

by Helen Lacey

  “Why not?”

  Kane sipped his drink. “I guess because the upstate New York Fortunes are a world away from the Texas Fortunes.”

  “They are?” she queried.

  “Humbler beginnings,” he explained. “My dad has a lot of resentment directed toward his father and his half brothers. Adam and I have tried to make him see that they’re not the enemy. But Dad can be stubborn and hard-nosed about some things. He never approved of our decision to move here and I can’t see that changing...particularly now that Brady is here, too.”

  “What about the rest of your family?” she inquired. “How do they feel?”

  “Well, Brian is Brady’s twin, so he’ll always support the decision. I don’t think my siblings Joshua and Arabella have quite made up their minds yet. And Mom...” His voice trailed off and he sighed, realizing it was the most he’d ever said about his family to anyone outside the Fortune circle. “She loves Dad and will stand by his side no matter what.”

  “I can understand that,” she said softly.

  “True love, you mean?” he queried, noticing that her eyes glittered brilliantly. “That’s how you felt about your husband?”

  She nodded. “Very much so.”

  “I’ve never...” His words trailed off and Kane was thankful that their meals arrived and Layla was distracted with attending to Erin. He’d been close to admitting he’d never been in love...never felt that intense connection to another person. Not like his parents had. Or Adam and Laurel. For a long time, he’d wondered if he simply wasn’t someone who felt things deeply, but the reality was, he just hadn’t met the right someone.

  Until now...

  The notion pushed him back in his seat and he stared at her, confused by the quiet intensity of his feelings. Was this how it happened? Without drama? Without so much as a kiss? No, he told himself. Of course, he was imagining it. It was desire, plain and simple. Just sex. Physical attraction. The kind that could be sated by a brief hookup. Right?

  Only, Kane knew he was kidding himself. For one, Layla wasn’t a hookup kind of woman. She was a single mom with responsibilities. And secondly, he wasn’t really that guy, either.

  “You’ve never...what?” she asked, surprising him by referring back to the comment after a couple of minutes.

  Kane shrugged. “Nothing,” he replied, and picked up the spoon Erin had tossed onto the floor. “Hey, kid, that’s quite a pitching arm you got there.”

  Erin laughed and squished her fingers into her food before offering him a piece of chicken nugget. Kane glanced toward Layla and saw she was watching the interaction with a tiny sort of smile.

  “I love seeing her smile,” Layla said. “She does that a lot around you. So do I,” she admitted.

  “I’m thrilled to hear it,” he replied.

  The conversation lightened over dinner and by quarter to seven they were finished and Kane had paid the check. He offered to carry a weary Erin to the Ranger and Layla agreed, watching as her daughter laid her head against his shoulder as they left the restaurant. He gently placed the child into the car seat and waited until Layla was in the vehicle before he climbed into the driver’s seat.

  She was mostly silent on the trip back to her home and Kane was content to drive and hear Erin murmuring in the back. The township quickly turned into suburban streets and within minutes he pulled up outside her house.

  “Thank you for a lovely evening,” she said as he switched off the ignition.

  He nodded and glanced backward. “She’s asleep.”

  “She’s relaxed,” Layla said. “I wish she fell asleep this easily every night.”

  “Does she have trouble sleeping?”

  “Sometimes,” she replied. “She likes me to read to her at night. It seems to settle her down. You probably noticed the other day when you were picking up your nephew that she gets separation anxiety. Her pediatrician has assured me it’s nothing to worry about and she’ll grow out of it, but of course I’m still concerned.”

  “Naturally,” he agreed. “But she’s been great tonight and perhaps all you can do is take things one day at a time.”

  “You’re probably right,” she said and sighed. “I think I worry too much.”

  “You’re her mom, of course you worry. My mom still worries about her kids. Goes with the territory. Maybe you need to be a little kinder to yourself, hmm?”

  “I’m not good at thinking about...me...you know,” she admitted and he felt the rawness in her words. “I guess you’ve figured that out already?”

  Kane reached out and grasped her hand, holding it gently within his own. Her skin was warm, her fingertips soft as they instinctively linked with his. In the darkened space the intimacy between them heightened, their combined touch amplifying the connection. Had a simple touch ever reached him with such intensity before? He couldn’t recall. Couldn’t think of a time when he’d been so drawn to someone.

  “Layla.” He said her name quietly and she met his gaze. “Would you like to—”

  “Good night, Kane.”

  Was that a shutdown? He wasn’t sure. He noticed she looked tense and tired, and of course she had her sleeping toddler in the back seat. Somehow, in a matter of seconds, the mood between them was suddenly strained. And he quickly realized the reason—she thought he was going to make a move.

  “Layla,” he said her name again, brushing his thumb across her knuckles before releasing her hand. “I’m not going to pressure you for anything. I mean, I don’t think we’re...” His words trailed off and he gestured to the sleeping child in the back. “This isn’t the time. Let’s get her inside.”

  He was out of the truck within seconds and soon she had her daughter in her arms and they were walking to her door. Kane passed her the diaper bag as they crossed the threshold and she dropped it by the hall stand.

  “Thank you, Kane,” she said as she turned to face him.

  “Get some sleep.” He reached out and cupped her cheek with his palm. “I’ll talk to you soon.”

  She nodded and Erin stirred in her arms. “Good night.”

  “Sweet dreams, Layla. Lock the door behind me.”

  Feeling like he’d been punched in the gut, Kane walked out the door and headed home.

  Chapter Five

  Coward.

  Layla was still thinking that on Friday. And about why she’d frozen like a Popsicle at the end of her date with Kane. Because of course she knew. She was scared witless about the idea of kissing him good-night. And of real intimacy. It had been so long since she’d felt the strength and comfort of a man’s arms around her that she’d put a wall up the moment the evening was near the end.

  Because that was what she did. She put walls up. She protected herself.

  “Everything okay, Layla?”

  She turned in her chair and saw Hailey standing by her desk. “Yeah,” she lied, “all good. Just finishing up the reminder texts for Monday’s bookings.”

  The other woman nodded. “So, Dillon and I were thinking of having a small dinner party in a few weeks. You should get Kane to bring you,” she said, and raised a brow. “I mean, if you two are still...you know...”

  Layla’s skin heated instantly and she managed a tight smile. “We’ll see.”

  It was all she could offer, since she hadn’t heard from him since their last date and it was now two thirty on Friday afternoon. Sure, it was barely a couple of days, but still, she suspected their brief dalliance might have run its course. She hadn’t given him any real encouragement, after all. By now he probably thought she was hard work and not worth the effort.

  Snap out of it!

  Layla shook herself off and berated her foolishness. She wasn’t that girl...the one who pined and mooned over a man. She was a got-it-together single mom who didn’t have time to waste on romantic drama.

  With that thought, she gr
abbed her cell and sent him a quick text.

  Thank you for dinner the other night. We had a lovely time. L & E.

  She tidied up her desk and wrote a few things in the planner for the following week, glancing at her phone every few seconds to see if he’d replied. But he didn’t. When three o’clock came and it was time to leave, she snatched up her cell and clocked out, still wondering why he hadn’t responded when she arrived at the day care center to get Erin about half an hour later, and then again after four when she got home.

  And she might have dwelled on it some more if it weren’t for the fact her kitchen floor was flooded with water. Layla sucked in a long breath, muttered a few curse words to herself, and sat a now-crying Erin into her crib and investigated the situation. She tried cleaning up the mess, but water kept flowing from the pipes beneath the sink, so she rolled up several thick towels and laid them in the doorway to stop the flood heading into the living room. She grabbed her cell and googled local plumbers and started calling the numbers. Two didn’t answer, the third couldn’t possibly come out until the following afternoon. She was just about to call her grandfather when her cell pealed. Thinking it was one of the plumbers returning her call, she didn’t look at the screen.

  “Hello,” she said on a rushed breath.

  “Hey there, sorry I missed your text earlier. I was in a meeting.”

  Kane.

  Layla’s chest tightened and she couldn’t stop the heat from burning her eyes. Standing in the kitchen with water running over her shoes, she experienced such an acute sense of hopelessness she could barely breathe. And hearing Kane’s voice somehow amplified that, making her feel more alone than she believed possible.

  “I can’t talk right now,” she said as she shuddered out a breath, and then quickly explained about the leak. “I have to try to find a plumber to come out right away and—”

  “I’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” he said quickly, cutting her off, and then the call ended.

  Layla tucked the phone in her pocket and tiptoed across the floor, swiftly removed her shoes and wiped her feet on a towel. Erin was still crying so she headed for the crib and picked her up.

  “It’s okay, sweetie, Mommy’s here,” she said as her daughter snuggled into her neck.

  She rocked her gently and walked around the house, singing her daughter’s favorite song to settle her down, and then lingered by the front door. Thirteen minutes later, Kane’s SUV pulled up outside her house and relief coursed through her veins. She watched as he strode up the path, looking innately masculine in jeans, boots and a light blue flannel over a white tank shirt.

  Layla opened the door to greet him and he lingered by the step for a moment, looking up.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  She nodded. “Just a bit frazzled, as much as I hate to admit it.”

  He climbed the porch steps and touched her shoulder. “We’ll sort it out.”

  Layla was amazed when Erin wriggled and turned and held out her arms to him. “No, honey, stay with Mommy for the moment.”

  He grinned. “It’s fine,” he said, and took her without hesitation, and Erin was quickly settled against his shoulder. “Lead the way.”

  He looked so relaxed holding Erin she almost envied him. Layla nodded and closed the door, walking directly to the kitchen.

  “So, yeah,” she said, and pointed to the floor. “As you can see, I have a problem.”

  He gently handed Erin back to her and walked into the kitchen, crouching down and quickly checking underneath the sink. “I’ve got some tools in the truck. Be back in a minute,” he said, and moved past her, lingering for a moment in the doorway. “Get Erin settled, and I’ll see to this.”

  Half an hour later, Erin was drinking juice from her sippy cup and playing with some toys, Kane had done a temporary fix on the leaking pipe and Layla was mopping up the floor. Once the floor was dry, she dropped a pile of sopping towels into the hamper and returned to the kitchen just as he was packing away his tools.

  “Looks like the seals have split and there’s a small crack in the pipe,” he explained. “I’m sure the repair will hold it until tomorrow. I’ve arranged for a plumber to be here at eight in the morning,” he said, and then paused. “Is that okay? Not too early?”

  “Not at all... I couldn’t get anyone to call me back.”

  “I know a guy who owes me a favor,” he said, and grinned. “It should be fine now.”

  “Thank you,” she said, and blinked back tears of gratitude. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help.”

  “No problem,” he said easily. “Well, I’ll head off.”

  “You could stay,” she suggested quickly. “I mean, it’s nearly five thirty and I was planning on cooking dinner for Erin and myself. Nothing too exotic, just chicken casserole. You’re welcome to join us...as a thank-you,” she added, and then realized she was making all kinds of presumptions because he probably already had plans. Perhaps even a date. He was a single guy—and a hot one—and women were probably lining up for him. “Although you probably already have plans for tonight.”

  “No plans,” he said with a wry grin, and held out his hands and nodded. “And I’d like to stay, but on the condition that we order pizza to save you the trouble of cooking. But I need to wash up first,” he said, and then looked down to his feet and the jeans that were soaked at the hems. “And change. I have my gym bag in the truck, so I’ll be back in a minute.”

  He grabbed his tool bag and headed outside, returning a few minutes later with a gym bag.

  “The bathroom is down the hall, third door on the left,” she said when he hovered in the hallway. “I need to give Erin her bath, so I’ll do that when you’re done.”

  When he emerged five minutes later he was dressed in dark gray sweatpants, a white T-shirt and sneakers. Layla almost swallowed her tongue when she caught sight of the hard muscles peeking out from beneath the sleeves, and a Celtic braid tattoo circling his biceps on one arm. He really did have the most divine shoulders, and her long-dormant, starved libido came back to life. And something else—the loneliness that had become her constant companion over the last eighteen months, that often clung to her limbs like a second skin, didn’t feel quite so intense in that moment.

  Layla didn’t want to feel needy and hopeless—that wasn’t her style. She hid those feelings deep down, because she was too proud to admit she wasn’t capable of managing things—of managing life—on her own. To admit it would be like admitting failure and defeat. She was an independent woman with a child to raise and didn’t have the time to waste on what-ifs or the memory of how her life had once been. She’d had to learn to embrace her solitude—to accept she was navigating life without someone at her side. But in the last hour she hadn’t felt alone. Instead, she felt as though suddenly she had someone to lean on, to rely on, and wasn’t sure how to compartmentalize the feeling.

  It was crazy, of course, since she’d known Kane a little over a week. A connection so strong didn’t happen that quickly. It took time and patience. It didn’t simply happen with a life force of its own. If she allowed herself to believe that, Layla knew she was setting herself up for one almighty fall—which she couldn’t do because she had to protect Erin first and foremost.

  Only, for one wild moment, she wondered if she was allowed to have something for herself.

  And that something was the man standing in front of her.

  “Are you okay, Layla?” Kane asked, noticing her expression.

  She met his gaze, her eyes darker than usual, and then nodded a little too quickly to convince him that she was really okay. “Yes, all good. I’m going to get Erin bathed and changed. Make yourself at home.”

  “I’ll order dinner,” he said. “Any pizza toppings I should avoid?”

  “Anchovies,” she said, and screwed up her nose. “And red peppers.”

 
“Got it.” He watched her walk down the hall with Erin in her arms, trying to avoid admiring the natural sway of her hips—and failing. He figured it made him predictable but he didn’t care. He enjoyed the sight too much.

  Bath time took about half an hour and when she returned to the living room Kane was on the sofa. Erin pulled away from her mother’s hand and walked toward him, her arms outstretched.

  “I really can’t believe how relaxed she is around you,” Layla said as she came around the couch.

  Kane noticed she’d changed into jeans and a red sweater that was scooped at the front and exposed more skin than usual. But he averted his gaze immediately and smiled as Erin grabbed hold of his knee and began climbing up. He gently helped her onto the couch and she was soon happily settled beside him.

  “Just call me the baby whisperer,” he said, and smiled.

  “It gives me hope that she might actually grow out of her separation issues sooner rather than later,” Layla said, and sat on the ottoman opposite the couch. “But the truth is, I feel guilty every time I leave her at day care and hear her crying when I walk away.”

  “I’m sure you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself,” Kane said, and grinned as Erin linked her hand around one of his fingers. “I’m also sure you do the very best for her.”

  “I try to keep it all together,” she replied. “Some days it isn’t easy. Like today,” she added, and sighed. “I’m not usually so helpless in a crisis. But when I saw the water on the floor and couldn’t contact a plumber...it all seemed so darn overwhelming. And then you came to my rescue like a white knight,” she said, her brown eyes darkening. “Thank you.”

  “That’s what friends are for, right?” he queried, watching her gaze dart down and then back up. “That’s what we are, yes?”

  She shrugged, as though she didn’t know what to do with the words. She was biting her lip a little and he realized she was nervous, and it also occurred to him that maybe she was nervous around all men. Had something happened to her? The very idea cut him deep down in his gut and made his protective instincts surge into overdrive.