Welcome to Mills & Boon. Jennifer Rae

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СКАЧАТЬ stop and then moved back into the bedroom. The door was open and she made her way across the room as steadily as she could. A light illuminated down the hall and she followed it to the nursery. But the room was empty. The panic returned and quickly seeped deep into her bones. Where were they?

      She turned on her bare heels and hurried back down the hall to the kitchen.

      Still nothing.

      When she reached the living room Cassie came to an abrupt halt in the doorway as relief flooded every pore. Oliver was safe. But he wasn’t with her friend. He was lying blissfully asleep against his uncle’s strong chest.

      Tanner was in the recliner, legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles, both hands cradling her sleeping son. He wore jeans and a white tank shirt and his feet were bare. His eyes were closed and his hair flopped over his forehead a little.

      Cassie’s belly rolled over as she watched them. In a matter of days she’d witnessed him form a bond with her son that touched her to her very core. It was the bond she’d dreamed Doug would have had with his son. But it wasn’t Doug cradling her child so gently. It wasn’t Doug who’d been so kind to her over the past few days.

      Doug was gone.

      And Tanner was now in her life. Until he left. Until the house sold and Doug’s estate was sorted. She needed to remember that he was passing through. He was temporary. And once he was gone her life could return to normal. She’d find somewhere to live, go back to work and raise her son...and forget all about Tanner McCord and his sexy smile and broad shoulders.

      She looked at him again. His eyes were now open and he was smiling.

      “Hey there,” he said softly. “How are you feeling?”

      Cassie nodded. Her arms were aching to hold her son, but the thought she might be contagious stopped her from rushing forward. And Oliver looked so peaceful and content resting against Tanner’s chest.

      “Okay,” she replied and stepped a little farther into the room. “Weak. I guess I’ve been out of it since yesterday?”

      “Pretty much,” he said and pushed up from the chair effortlessly. Oliver didn’t protest, but instead seemed to snuggle closer to his uncle. “He was restless,” Tanner explained and gently touched the baby’s head. “And he seems to like this.”

      She smiled warmly. “Thank you for taking care of him.”

      Tanner met her gaze. “That’s what family is for, Cassie.”

      Her throat tightened. Family. It had been so long since she’d thought she had anyone to call family. With her grandfather’s slide into dementia and Doug’s continued absence from her life even though she’d considered them a couple, Cassie had felt very alone for the past few years. Oliver’s arrival had changed that of course, but he was a baby and needed her 24/7. To have someone to rely upon, to need someone herself, was a different kind of feeling. Not that she needed Tanner. Not at all. But he’d said they were family...and for the moment, while she was feeling so weak and weary, it made her feel a little less alone.

      “How about I put him in his crib and then make you some herbal tea?” Tanner suggested quietly.

      Cassie nodded. “That would be good.”

      Careful not to wake the baby, he slowly got out of the chair and came to stand beside her. Cassie’s heart rolled over when she gazed into the face of her sleeping son and she touched Oliver’s head gently. Glancing up, she saw Tanner watching her with a kind of blistering intensity and the look made her insides quiver. His eyes were dark and hypnotic and she was quickly drawn into his stare. So close, with only Oliver between them, she was more conscious of him than she had ever been of any man in her life. There was a connection between them...a link that had developed over the past few days. And it wasn’t simply about Oliver.

      This was something else.

      This was physical attraction...pure and simple.

      An attraction she’d always been able to ignore. Until now.

      “Be back in a minute,” Tanner said, breaking the visual connection.

      He left the room and Cassie let out a long breath. There was nothing right or reasonable about her feelings. Nothing she could say to herself that would assuage the heaviness in her heart. He was Doug’s brother so desiring Tanner was out of the question.

      He returned about ten minutes later and Cassie was sitting on the sofa, legs curled up, her chin resting in one hand. He came into the room with a tray and placed it on the small table beside the sofa.

      “I heated some soup,” he explained and passed her a mug. “You should probably eat something.”

      Cassie took the mug of warm broth and smiled. “Thank you. You’ve been very kind.”

      He shrugged loosely, as though he was embarrassed by her words. “It’s nothing.”

      That wasn’t even halfway to the truth. She managed a wry smile. “Ah...how did I get into these pajamas?”

      “Lauren,” he explained. “She was here this morning.”

      Cassie nodded a little. “Oh, I don’t remember much of today.”

      “Her fiancé checked you out and she organized the medication you needed. She also suggested taking Oliver home with her for the night, but I thought you’d prefer he stay here.”

      “I do,” she said quickly, hating the idea of being apart from her baby. “And you stayed?”

      He shrugged again. “It seemed like the right thing to do. You were in no condition to look after Oliver last night and today.”

      She was tempted to thank him again but sensed it wasn’t what he wanted to hear. Instead she sipped the broth and settled back into the sofa. It was strange, she mused, how comfortable she was being around him. She hadn’t expected it. On the two occasions they’d met before she’d always had her guard up, and always felt as though Tanner had, too. But this time was different. There was no one to hide behind. No one to whisper words about how unfriendly and indifferent he was. No one to tell her he was the kind of man who preferred his own company and his horses to having real relationships. Cassie was seeing him without Doug’s bias and prejudice for the first time...and she liked him. A lot.

      “So, I guess you should stay tonight, too?”

      The intense way he was watching her made it impossible to look anywhere but into his eyes.

      “Do you want me to stay?”

      Cassie took a second and then nodded. “I think Oliver would like it.”

       So would I...

      “All right,” he said and watched her over the rim of his coffee mug. “I’ll return to Ruthie’s tomorrow.”

      “Thank you.”

      Silence stretched between them and Cassie waited for discomfiture to crawl across her skin. When it didn’t come she knew it was because she’d quickly become accustomed to Tanner’s company. Despite how attracted she was to him and despite how much СКАЧАТЬ