The Bachelor's Baby Dilemma. Sheri WhiteFeather

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СКАЧАТЬ instructor, he suspected she was beyond flexible. But she’d always been able to get into bendy positions. In the talent competition of the pageants, she used to perform modern dance.

      The girl with the sugary name.

      He used to call her all sorts of silly things: gumdrop, taffy, peanut brittle, gummy bear, lollipop. But his favorite had been cotton candy, especially when she wore pink. Did she still wear that color? Or had she outgrown it? Seventeen years had passed. A lifetime of memories.

      She led him through the back door and into the kitchen, and he suspected that this was her prized room in the house, with its butcher-block island and bright white appliances. An antique cart in the corner was crowded with spices, pots and pans, old salt and pepper shakers, and other culinary knickknacks.

      No doubt she liked to cook. It even smelled like cookies. It appeared as if a candle was creating the fresh-baked aroma, but it still struck him as homey, with the desired effect being the same.

      She definitely seemed domestic. Even at a young age, she’d been marriage-minded. Back when they were together, she’d been determined to save herself for her future husband. She’d thought it was a romantic notion. And now she was divorced.

      He wondered about the type of guy she’d married and what had gone wrong, but he sure as fire wasn’t going to ask her, no matter how curious he was.

      His thoughts continued to be scattered as Candy walked him all over the house, pointing out architectural details and decorative features.

      Once they were in the second guestroom, she said, “This could be Ivy’s nursery. It’s already painted in pastels.” She motioned to the walls. “Lilac trimmed in yellow.”

      He checked out the color theme, and she smiled, quite sweetly, as if she was picturing the baby snuggled up in this room. Seeing her expression gave him comfort, reminding him of how special she was. “Did I ever thank you for being there for me? When everything happened?”

      “You were my friend. My boyfriend. I wanted to help you through it.”

      “I know.” Behind her, the light from a set of etched glass windows was bathing the potential nursery in a warm glow. “But I just wanted to clarify that if I didn’t tell you how much it meant to me then, I’m telling you now.”

      “You don’t need to.” She kept her voice soft. “Really, you don’t. But I appreciate it.”

      “I don’t want to go backward in time. But ever since Meagan asked me to become Ivy’s guardian, I keep sliding into the past.”

      “And now, of all things, you run into me.”

      “It’s strange, isn’t it? Especially since we have a friend in common that we didn’t even know about.”

      “Did you tell Eric that your sister is in prison and that you’ll be taking care of her baby?”

      He shook his head. “That wasn’t something I was inclined to mention while we were getting caught up. I probably should have, though. You can tell him if you want to. You’ll probably talk to him before I will. Or you’ll talk to Dana or whatever.”

      “Does Meagan know that you’ve been thinking about Ella?” she asked.

      “No. I couldn’t say that to her. It wouldn’t be right to burden her with it. And if it’s crossed her mind, she hasn’t said anything to me about it, either. But I think she made peace with what happened to Ella a long time ago. She talks about our sister as if she’s an angel looking down on us. But maybe it’s because Meagan was so young when Ella died that she saw it in a softer way.”

      “Kids are supposed to be more resilient.”

      Tanner shifted his stance, glad that Meagan didn’t share his fears. “We discussed other aspects of me becoming Ivy’s guardian, like how taking care of a baby is going to affect my lifestyle. I warned her that I don’t know anything about being a single dad. Or any kind of dad.”

      “You’re not the father. You’re the uncle.”

      “Not according to tradition. In the old Cheyenne way, being an uncle is the same as being a father, and it’s especially important if the dad is unavailable. In the early days, the word for father and uncle was one and the same. Tshe-hestovestse.”

      She flashed another of her sweet smiles. “That’s nice. I like that.”

      Tanner didn’t. To him, it just intensified his role in his niece’s life. “I bought a bunch of baby books.”

      She moved a little closer. “You did?”

      “Yes, but I haven’t read them yet. Still, I figured it would help to know the stages and what to expect. It wouldn’t be fair to Ivy to leave everything to the nanny. I don’t want my niece to think I’m treating her like a leper. Babies can probably sense that kind of stuff.”

      “I’m sure they can.” She was looking at him as if he’d just bewitched her.

      Teasing her, he replied, “Is this how women are going to react to me now? Am I going to become a major chick magnet because I have a baby?”

      “What are you talking about?”

      “You’re acting all dreamy over me, Candy.”

      “I am not.” She got downright indignant, squaring her shoulders and jutting out her pretty little chin. “I’m just standing here.”

      “Making goo-goo eyes at me.”

      “You’re full of baloney.”

      He shrugged, then laughed. “I was just kidding around.” It was his twisted way of cracking a joke, of making light of the chemistry that still existed between them.

      She made a face at him. “You always did have a rotten sense of humor.”

      “At least I haven’t lost that side of myself. With everything that’s going on, I could be crying in my beer.”

      “Are you kidding? You practically are.”

      Touché, he thought. She’d got him there. He rolled his eyes, and they both managed a genuine laugh.

      He returned his attention to the pastel-colored walls, going back to where the conversation first started. “I don’t know anything about decorating a nursery.” He didn’t have a clue about that sort of thing. “When the time comes, I’ll have to get someone to help me pick out the furniture, just to be sure I don’t screw it up.”

      “Maybe you can order a complete set, with everything already going together.”

      “That should work.”

      “It will, Tanner. It’ll all work out.”

      “Thanks.” He appreciated that she was offering positive affirmations. He needed as many good vibes as he could get. Then he took a second look at her and said, “You seem like you should’ve had kids. With you knowing so much about them.”

      She cleared her throat. “I spend a lot of time СКАЧАТЬ