In a suit and heels? She tugged back. “I’d prefer to change.”
Impatience underscored his low tone. “Promise you won’t take long?”
She fell victim to the seductive smile. “Five minutes.”
“I’m going to hold you to that,” Thad murmured with another lingering look, then he released her hand and headed out the front door.
* * *
IT WAS FIFTEEN MINUTES. Thad knew, because he was watching the clock and the door. The wait was worth it, though, when Michelle walked into the party.
She had changed into a pale yellow, V-necked sweater, black denim jeans and boots that made the most of her long and lean runner’s body. She’d swept up a section of her gorgeous hair in a jeweled clasp. Her cheeks were flushed pink. From self-consciousness? he wondered. Interesting, because he’d never seen her ill at ease before. Unless you counted the aftermath of their one and only kiss. Then, she had looked much the same way. As if she’d wanted to be with him, and she didn’t. As if she’d enjoyed kissing him, yet wished she hadn’t fallen victim to the potent chemistry sizzling between them.
“You made it.” Thad wrapped an arm around her shoulders and guided her into the throng of curious coworkers. “Let me introduce you to everyone…”
To Thad’s satisfaction, Michelle warmed to the throng as much as they warmed to her. She especially hit it off with Dotty Pederson, which was good, Thad thought.
“Dotty has agreed to be William’s nanny,” he told Michelle.
Out of the corner of his eye, Thad could see Violet Hunter watching the two of them, an inscrutable expression on her normally cheerful countenance.
At the same time, Michelle looked as if she didn’t know whether to be happy or concerned about Dotty Pederson’s new position in William’s life. Not sure why she’d object to the hiring of a nanny, Thad continued, “Dotty used to supervise the E.R. nursing staff. She retired last summer.”
Dotty ran a hand through her short, white hair. A smile split her elfin face. “I’m sixty. It was time. But I’ve been bored, staying at home. This will be perfect, especially since Thad has agreed to let me care for William in my home while he’s working at the E.R.”
Beside him, Thad felt Michelle relax ever so slightly. “That does sound perfect,” she said.
Still, Thad could see that something about the arrangement was bugging her. And he was even more sure of it when she slipped off toward the buffet table seconds later and lost herself in the throng.
By eight-thirty the impromptu party was winding down.
Guests began departing. When Michelle looked as if she was about to head for the door, too, Thad brought William to her. “Mind holding the little guy for a few minutes?” Thad said. He put William in Michelle’s arms before she could formulate a reply.
That was all it took. Michelle melted visibly at the sight and feel of the baby in her arms. She looked, Thad thought, like a natural-born mother.
The kind every kid would want and should have. And the kind William needed.
* * *
MICHELLE WASN’T FOOLED. She knew Thad had asked her to hold William in order to make sure she was the last guest to depart. She couldn’t really say she minded. She hadn’t had a chance to cuddle William since this morning at the law office, and she had missed him. And Thad. Which was ridiculous. She and Thad barely knew each other!
“So how are things going?” she asked Thad as soon as they were alone. She still wanted to stay uninvolved, but figured a few more minutes’ conversation with Thad wouldn’t hurt anything.
Thad put the plastic cups and paper plates in plastic garbage bags. “Glenn didn’t tell you?”
Michelle swayed a surprisingly wide-awake William back and forth. “I haven’t seen him. Although for the record, he probably won’t keep me apprised of what’s going on unless I’m called in, in a pinch, to handle something on the case.”
Thad frowned. “I’m not sure I like that.” He bent over to put a twist tie on the bag, then set it in the laundry room, just inside the back door. Then he rummaged beneath the sink and pulled out a roll of paper towels and some disinfectant cleaner. He spritzed the sticky places on the counter, then rubbed them dry with a paper towel. “Don’t get me wrong. Glenn is a nice guy and he seems very competent.”
“He is.”
Finished, Thad wadded up the paper towel and threw it in the trash can beneath the sink. “I’ll just feel better if you’re involved, on some level.” He turned to face her. “So what I want to ask you is this—will you sit in on all the lawyer-client meetings and conference calls, not as cocounsel, since you’re clearly uncomfortable with that, but as my friend?”
* * *
THAD DIDN’T KNOW what Michelle’s reaction was going to be. He knew what he wanted—her by his side. And not just in legal meetings or court hearings. Or for William’s sake. But for his.
“Have you talked to Glenn about this?” Michelle asked finally.
Thad lounged against the counter, arms folded. “I asked him if he would mind if you remained involved on some level, and he didn’t. So…will you be there as my friend?”
Michelle raked her teeth across her lower lip. “I guess you don’t have anyone else you’d rather ask?”
Unsure how blunt to be, Thad said, “I trust you.” I want you. “William trusts you. I just think you’d be a good person to be on our team.”
She smiled faintly, then finally relented. “All right,” she said. “I’ll be there whenever the two of you need me.”
Gratitude flooded through him. “Thank you.”
Michelle crossed to him and settled against the counter next to him, so the wide-awake William could see both of them at the same time. “So bring me up to speed on what happened in your meeting with Glenn,” she suggested.
“He contacted Beatrix and Brice Johnson’s attorney while I was in the office. Their attorney confirmed that the Johnsons did want to terminate their parental rights, and since my petition-slash-motion to adopt has to be filed at the same time, they decided Glenn would file all the papers simultaneously with the court as soon as he gets the signed and notarized affidavits from the other attorney.” He paused. “He’s supposed to get them tomorrow morning and file everything with family court by the end of business tomorrow.”
“Wow.” Michelle looked impressed.
“I know. I’m pleased with how fast it’s all happening, too.”
She shifted to better see his face. “No second thoughts?”
Sensing she would understand, Thad confided, “I admit I’m a little overwhelmed with the logistics of becoming a parent, all the stuff that has to be done, but I feel good about having Dotty babysit William when I’m at work. She’s an excellent nurse, as well as a mother and grandmother, so he’ll be in good hands. And I had a lot of others volunteer to help out, too, so I know I’ve got the child care covered.” He sighed. “The only thing that really bothers me is the waiting period, after the papers are filed with the court. Glenn said it could take thirty to forty-five days before we get a hearing and the adoption becomes final.” Thad frowned, wanting Michelle’s reaction. “It seems like a long time to wait.”
She didn’t seem to think so. “Why?”
Thad tensed. “I guess I worry someone else will come forward and want William, too. Or Brice and Beatrix will change their minds.” And that would really suck.
Michelle raised her face to his. “What about you?” she said softly, searching his eyes. “Is there any chance you’ll change your mind?”
It was an innocent question, bluntly put. Thad wasn’t offended. Maybe because he knew she was only asking because she had come to care for William and wanted to see the little guy loved and protected as much as he did. “Not a chance,” he said.
Michelle smiled.
“So,” Thad continued, “will you be my backup on this?” Legally and…otherwise?
Michelle took the hand he offered. “It would be an honor,” she said.
* * *
HAPPY EVERYTHING WAS working out for Thad and William so quickly and so well, Michelle gave William a bath and a bottle and rocked him in the rocker-glider someone had brought to the shower, while Thad took out the trash and finished cleaning up after the impromptu party.
By the time he had finished, William was asleep in her arms.
Thad carried the bassinet someone else had given him upstairs and placed it next to the bed in the master bedroom.
Michelle laid the snoozing William on his back in the cozy infant bed. He jerked his arms and legs. She placed her hand gently on his tummy, reassuring him. His movements quieted.
Acutely aware of Thad standing beside her, she stayed there a moment longer, then backed soundlessly out of the room and headed down the stairs beside him.
The house was quiet.
So quiet she could hear the meter of their breaths.
At the foot of the stairs she stopped and looked up at him. He looked down at her. The next thing she knew she was in his arms. His lips were on hers. And the world around them ground to a halt as emotion built upon emotion.
She wasn’t sure what drew her more, the fact that Thad was such a decent guy or that he knew how to kiss like no one else.
One touch of his lips and she was on fire. The sweep of his tongue was even more electric. He tasted hot and male and possessed her with a kiss so intimate and sure she tingled all over. Wanted all the more. And did not know, for the first time in a very long time, if she ever wanted to stop.
* * *
THAD HADN’T MEANT to kiss her tonight, and certainly not like this, with no warning and no restraint. But when she stopped and looked up at him, her breath catching at the same time the air stalled in his chest, he knew it was kiss her then and there, or regret the chance not taken. So he had wrapped his arms around her, drawn her close and lowered his mouth to hers.
And once their lips had touched, there was no question—he had to give it his all. Had to discover again what she liked, how she kissed, how she tasted, at the end of a very long day.
Initially, she simply surrendered to the kiss, let him take the lead. But it wasn’t long before she was venturing, too, tangling her tongue with his, increasing the pressure of her lips, opening her mouth to his all the more.
Heat and speed turned to languorous desire for them both. Then sweet, wild yearning. A passion destined to be fulfilled.
And that was when a furious, high-pitched cry split the air, drawing them apart.
* * *
“WILLIAM,” THEY SAID in unison.
Michelle shook her head. “I can’t believe he’s awake again.”
“Dotty suggested swaddling,” Thad said, as the two of them ascended the stairs and headed for the master bedroom.
Michelle tensed. “I’ve heard of it, of course, but I’ve never done it.”
“I’ve never done it, either.” Thad picked William up and put him against his shoulder. In a replay of what had happened repeatedly over the past two days, as soon as he was picked up, William stopped crying and cuddled against Thad’s broad shoulder, deeply content but also wide-awake. Doubtless knowing the lack of quality sleep couldn’t be any better for the baby than it was for him, Thad asked, “Think we can find instructions on the internet?”
“I’m sure we can,” Michelle said.
They went into the study down the hall. Thad’s computer was already booted up, so it was easy to sit down and do a search.
“Problem number one,” Thad said, after they’d perused the instructions. “We don’t have a swaddling blanket.”
“Are you sure?” Michelle asked him. “You’ve got those bags of used infant clothing down there. There might be one in there.”
“Good point.”
“You stay here with William. I’ll go look,” Michelle said. She returned with two shopping bags full of infant clothing, most of it for newborns, as well as half-a-dozen stretchy, waffle-weave receiving blankets. She held one up for him to peruse. “I think this is what they’re talking about.”
“Looks right,” Thad said.
“Where should we do this?”
Thad shrugged. “My bed?”
Michelle flushed, despite herself. “Good idea.”
She led the way into Thad’s bedroom. Glad for something to concentrate on other than the man who slept in this very bed, she spread out the baby blanket on the mattress, then folded down one corner of it. Thad placed William on it, then together they aligned his shoulders with the top of the blanket. Next, they brought one side over and tucked it underneath him, just as the instructions had said.
“Now the other side,” Thad murmured.
Last but not least, they brought the bottom point up and tucked it in the hem just under his chin.
William had been patient while all the wrapping was going on. When he realized he could no longer wave his arms and legs, his face scrunched up and he let out another lusty cry.
Michelle picked him up and looked down into his face. “Now, now, this is not so bad. Being swaddled like this is going to help you sleep.”
William’s lower lip shot out.
Thad laughed.
William looked at Thad, as if wondering what this was all about. Thad looked at Michelle. The two looked so good together. So perfect. Like mother and son.
She handed him over gently. “I think you should rock him now.”
Thad frowned. “I’m not sure he’s going to go back to sleep. He’s had ten minutes.”
Michelle gave them both an indulgent look. “I think he will if you rock him.”
She was looking for an excuse to leave, Thad thought, before they found themselves alone and started kissing again.
“You just want a good night’s sleep,” Thad teased.
“Yep.” Michelle pranced out of his bedroom and back downstairs.
Thad followed, William in his arms.
Michelle paused in the hallway to kiss William’s cheek and look deep into Thad’s eyes. “Seriously, I hope this swaddling thing works,” she told him.
“I hope so, too,” Thad said.
Otherwise it was going to be a long night.
Chapter Five
The next morning, Thad had just finished giving William his nine-o’clock bottle when the doorbell rang. He’d been up for hours. He hadn’t had a shower or shaved yet. But maybe that was a good thing, he mused, if his early caller was yet another single woman hoping to rescue him from single fatherhood. Maybe she’d take one look at him and run scared.
Holding William in his arms, football style, he made his way to the door.
Michelle stood on the other side of the threshold. Unlike him, she was dressed for work, in a gray pin-striped suit, silky white blouse and conservative gray heels. A simple silver necklace rested just below her collarbone, in the open V of her blouse. She had her briefcase slung over one shoulder, her BlackBerry in her palm. She finished reading whatever was written on the screen, then looked at him, her expression grave.
Thad’s gut tightened. There were times in his life when he kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. This was one of them. “Something up?” he asked casually.
As Michelle nodded, her silky hair brushed against her chin. Her eyes held his. “May I come in?”
“Sure.”
Her heels clicking on his wood floors, Michelle followed him into the living room, where the gifts from the impromptu shower were still heaped in messy stacks. Thad knew he should be doing something with all the stuff, but right now he had no idea what to do with most of it. Although a few of the blankets and a couple of baby rattles had already come in handy.
The fragrance of Michelle’s hair and skin sending his senses into overdrive, Thad reached down with his free hand and cleared a place for her in a club chair.
She flashed a too-polite smile, then gracefully moved to take the seat. “Glenn’s in Fort Stockton this morning taking a deposition for another case, so he asked me to cover for him.”
T
had moved past her and sat down on the sofa across from her. “What’s happened?”
Michelle’s eyes reflected the concern of someone left to deliver bad news.
“We just got word from family court,” she told him matter-of-factly. “Your case has been assigned to Judge Barnes.”
“That’s bad, I take it.”
Michelle hesitated a second too long for Thad’s comfort. “Judge Barnes is something of a stickler.”
Meaning, Thad thought, old-fashioned and sexist.
“He’s really by-the-book,” Michelle continued with obvious reluctance. “And he doesn’t mince words. He tends to say exactly what’s on his mind.”
William snuggled against Thad’s chest and, even in his sleep, let out a contented sigh. Thad tore his gaze from the baby’s precious face. “And what is on Judge Barnes’s mind?” he inquired warily.
Briefly worry lit her pretty green eyes. “We’re about to find out. He wants you and William and your representative—which right now is going to be me—and the Johnsons and their attorney, Karin Hendricks, in his courtroom at 1:00 p.m. today.”
“You don’t think…” Thad swallowed around the sudden compression in his throat. “He’s not going to order William into foster care, is he?”
From her inscrutable expression, Thad noticed Michelle wasn’t making any promises. “Besides, I thought I didn’t have to go to court for thirty to forty-five days.”
“Generally, that’s the way it works,” Michelle allowed.
“But not in this case?”
Michelle tugged down the hem of her skirt, which had ridden up slightly on her thigh. She leaned forward. “There are unusual aspects to the origin of the agreement between you and the Johnsons regarding the adoption, as well as how you came to have physical custody of the child. It’s appropriate for Judge Barnes to want to go over everything and make sure everyone is on the same page.”
* * *
FOUR HOURS LATER Michelle met Thad and William just outside the hearing room in the Summit County Courthouse. Thad looked very handsome in an olive-green suit and tie. William was wearing a white sleeper with a satin yellow duck sewn across the front.
The Texas Rancher's Vow: The Texas Rancher's VowFound: One Baby Page 24
