For Baby's Sake. Janice Maynard

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СКАЧАТЬ wasn’t stupid. He knew Lila didn’t want his help, and he also knew she was antsy around him. Though they had ended their relationship long ago, the physical pull was still there. He sure as hell felt it.

      If Lila had been faced with any crisis, he would have offered to assist, even if she turned him down. But in this instance, there was a baby involved. Lila might not want his help with her niece, but she was going to get it.

      Knocking the crib together was no trouble at all. He barely even glanced at the instructions. He’d spent most of his adult life working with tools and lumber and varnish and paint. Maybe because he’d never known his father, he’d always been drawn to pursuits that were traditionally masculine. As if he could somehow make up for his male parent’s absence.

      The patriarch of the Kavanagh family was the stuff of legend. James was the only brother who had no memory of him at all, though even Patrick’s recollections were hazy. Reggie Kavanagh had become obsessed with finding the lost silver mine that launched the family fortunes decades before.

      Kavanagh wealth and influence had founded Silver Glen. The small town with its alpine feel and cozy charm drew visitors from all over the world. Careful planning and restriction had kept overbuilding under control.

      Sadly, Reggie Kavanagh gave his life in pursuit of a pipe dream. He set out one day on yet another of his hunting expeditions—hunting for the lost mine—and never returned. After several years, the coroner issued a death certificate listing the deceased as “presumed dead,” but not knowing for sure had left its mark on each of the Kavanaghs in different ways.

      James stood and stretched his back. The bed looked sturdy and shiny. He would let Lila deal with the sheets and stuff. Women had ideas about that kind of thing.

      He cleaned up the leftover bits and pieces and carried the cardboard out to the recycle bin. It was dark now. The lights shining from Lila’s house cast a cozy glow across the space that separated their homes. Sometimes he wondered if he and Lila could have done anything differently to salvage their relationship. But in the end, he had concluded that they were simply too different.

      They wanted vastly divergent things out of life. The gulf was so wide, neither of them had been able to see any room for compromise.

      James hated failing at anything. Growing up with six brothers had honed his competitive instincts. But love wasn’t a sport. Sex? Maybe. Love? Not at all.

      In his pocket, his cell phone dinged. He pulled it out.

      Pizza’s here.

      His stomach rumbled right on cue. Not bothering to lock his door, he loped across the side yard. He wasn’t in love with Lila anymore. He probably never was. But he was curiously pleased about the thought of having her close at hand again.

      Did that make him a sick, complicated bastard? Perhaps. Still, there were worse addictions. Lila’s front door was unlocked, so he let himself in. Crime happened in Silver Glen, but it was rare. The community was tight-knit, and visitors tended to be movers and shakers who paid top dollar for lodging.

      He found his two soon-to-be houseguests in Lila’s kitchen. Apparently, Lila had ordered a high chair in addition to the bed. Sybbie seemed to be enjoying her new perch.

      Lila shoved the box across the table. “Help yourself. I bought plenty.”

      It shouldn’t have surprised him that she remembered his favorite toppings. Lila Baxter was a detail person... Type A to the max, but in a lot of good ways. She was organized and energetic, and she had a knack for juggling several projects at once. It wasn’t her fault that life had tossed her the one ball she was likely to drop.

      They ate quietly except for the baby’s gurgles and coos. He could hear a clock ticking in the other room.

      To anyone looking in the window, they would appear to be an ordinary American family. Appearances could be deceiving.

      When he couldn’t let the uncomfortable silence drag on a moment more, he stood up abruptly. “Why don’t I take Sybbie? That will make it easier for you to pack a bag.”

      Lila nodded, her eyes not quite meeting his. “Sounds good. Thanks.”

      James took the baby and left, his chest tight. At this rate, he and Lila were going to kill each other with politeness. It was a stupid, artificial situation. But the only alternatives he knew with her were hot, crazy sex and shouting matches. Neither of those was gonna fly right now, so kindness it was.

Four

      Lila was still learning how to pack a diaper bag. The sheer amount of stuff a baby needed these days was incredible. She threw a few of her own things into a small carry-all and made one last sweep of the bedroom to be sure she hadn’t forgotten anything.

      Walking into James’s house took all the courage she possessed. She paused in the foyer, hearing his footsteps upstairs and the rumble of his voice as he talked to the baby.

      While man and child were occupied, she scoped out the new living arrangements. James had made amazing progress in such a short time frame. She knew he had a habit of using his spare bedroom for a dumping ground. But all the sports equipment and miscellany had been cleared away. The queen bed was neatly made and the small attached bathroom was spotless.

      In the office, James had moved things out of the way to accommodate the crib. Lila put a sheet on the small mattress and smoothed the wrinkles from the soft cotton that was printed with gamboling monkeys and bananas. Already, she had decided not to shroud little Sybbie in everything pink. This was the twenty-first century. Her niece might grow up to be president one day.

      James and Sybbie found her just as she was finishing up. She wrinkled her nose. “I think I read somewhere that you’re supposed to wash baby things before you use them the first time. But I don’t want to delay her bedtime.”

      “It won’t matter for just one night. You can do a load of laundry tomorrow.”

      “Okay.” Wow. This was never going to work if they couldn’t loosen up. The tension headache had started as soon as she walked into his house.

      James’s phone dinged, signaling a text. When he pulled it out and looked at it, his face reddened.

      “What’s wrong?” she asked, faintly alarmed by the look of consternation on his face.

      “Nothing. Nothing at all. But I have a date tonight and I need to hit the road.”

      She gaped at him before snapping her mouth shut and straightening her spine. “I’ll take Sybbie. Have fun.” The words felt like sandpaper in her throat. She took the baby from him, careful not to let her hands brush his.

      “We’ll try not to disturb you when we come in.”

      We? Lila felt the color drain from her cheeks. Her stomach felt funny...as if she had swallowed bad milk. “No problem. I’ll close our doors. You won’t bother us at all.”

      * * *

      James strode out of his own house like a felon fleeing the scene of a crime. He jumped in his car, turned the ignition hard enough to bend the key and peeled out of the driveway with a squeal of tires. Hell, hell, hell. Why had he ever suggested this asinine arrangement?

      He’d СКАЧАТЬ