LITMIR.BIZ

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at ease, but better than last night. “Andrea—his previous nanny—already texted this morning to check on him.”

      “That was nice of her.”

      “Definitely. I told her he’s doing well. Not that I knew exactly how he would wake up. But at least then you’d be here, so I wouldn’t have to worry.”

      “Sounds like you two did great.” Emma flashed a grin at Hudson as she made her way to the stove with the eggs and a carton of milk. He kicked and waved his arms in answer. “Sweet boy.” She leaned in, pressing numerous kisses to his forehead. “If you slept all night, I bet you’re hungry.”

      Emma turned to Gage’s cupboards and scrounged for a bowl, hiding a megawatt smile. It had worked! Her plan to abandon Gage and Hudson had panned out.

      Gage hadn’t answered all of the questions she’d lobbed at him while on his front step, but he wasn’t a haggard mess. He’d managed a shower. That had to be a good sign.

      Emma had hoped and prayed Hudson would sleep well. She’d also anticipated some fussiness or possibly a meltdown—from him or Gage. But the scenario she’d walked into this morning was way better than she’d imagined.

      Maybe convincing Gage to keep the baby would be easier than she’d thought.

      * * *

      “He didn’t exactly sleep all night.”

      Emma cracked an egg and emptied it into the glass bowl, placing the shell on a paper towel. “Oh, he didn’t? That’s a bummer. So what happened? Did he cry?”

      “He woke up at about five.”

      Her hand froze midcrack on the second egg, clear liquid sliding down the outside of the glass bowl. She finished dumping in what was left, then wiped up the spill with a paper towel. After foraging a piece of shell out of the eggs, she tossed the paper towel and shell into the trash.

      “I heard a noise around then.”

      Emma’s head whipped in his direction, panic dancing in her silver-blue eyes. “You did? What was it? Ouch.” Her fingers dug into the side of her neck as she faced the counter again.

      “A vehicle, and I don’t think it would have been one of the guys. Too early. Do you have a knot?”

      “Yeah, but it’s not a big deal. So...you didn’t see who it was?”

      “No. When I moved, Hudson roused. I fed him a bottle and he went back to sleep. That’s when I laid him in his bed.”

      “Oh, what a relief.”

      That was a strange response. Unless... It couldn’t have been Emma he’d heard this morning, could it? But why would she be here at that hour?

      Gage switched Hudson to his left arm. “Let me.” He took over massaging the knot for her. The faint hint of something sweet—like vanilla or cinnamon—teased his senses. His stomach rumbled, thankfully quietly, in response. To the idea of food or Emma herself?

      The first, of course. Emma was too young for him and too...pristine. Like a dish someone would put on a high shelf and then never use. He was world-weary and disheartened regarding relationships—like an old, dirty slop bucket used for feeding pigs. The two items didn’t belong in the same vicinity. Emma deserved a fresh relationship with a man who hadn’t been through what he had. Who wasn’t jaded. And who wanted kids.

      Strange that his mind had even traveled in that direction regarding her. He’d known her for a couple of years and it never had before.

      “You don’t need to do that.” Emma motioned to his kneading, while at the same time relaxing her neck in the other direction to allow him access. “But it feels really good.” Since Emma faced the counter, she couldn’t see his amused grin. He liked how the truth rolled from her tongue, often, it seemed, without her permission.

      Except at this moment, when she was acting a bit elusive.

      “Thanks for the massage.” Emma returned to the eggs, cracking and adding two more. “Well, I’m glad it wasn’t worse, that Hudson wasn’t up every hour or two.”

      Dread rolled through him. “Babies do that?”

      “They can when they’re little. Probably not at this age, but with all he’s been through...not impossible. Especially with the new surroundings.”

      “So how’d you sleep last night?”

      “Great.” The word reeked of fake perkiness. “Where’s your frying pan?”

      He pointed with the toe of his leather slipper to the lower cupboard. She found a small one, then sprayed it with oil and set it on the burner.

      Hudson squirmed in his arms, and Gage put him on the floor. He crawled across the kitchen to the dining table and began inspecting a chair. He put a hand on the bottom rung and attempted to pull up, then wobbled and dropped back to the ground. Confusion and worry puckered his little brow as he made his way back to them. Poor kid. Everything was new and different for him.

       I miss your dad, too, little guy. I wish I was more like him. But, I promise, I am going to find the right family for you.

      Emma beat the eggs, then sent them careening into the pan. It whooshed as the mixture hit the heated surface.

      When Hudson gave a disgruntled cry, Emma turned to him. “Oh, kiddo, you’re so out of your element. We need to unpack the rest of your toys this morning.” She opened a lower cupboard and retrieved a large metal mixing bowl, then a plastic serving spoon from the utensil drawer. Once she handed them to Hudson, he contentedly made a racket with the two items.

      Gage leaned against the counter, facing Emma as she stirred the eggs in the pan. She didn’t look at him.

      “Anything I can do to help?”

      “Nope. This is too easy to require assistance.” After finishing the eggs, she turned off the burner, carrying the pan over to Hudson’s high chair. She used the spatula to spread some of the scrambled eggs onto the tray and then blew across them. Once she returned the pan to the stove, she scooped Hudson up from the floor and transported him to the high chair.

      “Do you want some eggs? Does that sound good?” She buckled him in, securing a bib around his neck. He fisted a handful of food and maneuvered it, not so gracefully, into his mouth.

      Emma got a plate out of the cupboard next to Gage. “Hungry?” She nodded toward the pan. “I made enough for you.”

      “And you?”

      “No. I already ate.”

      She moved to the utensil drawer, but Gage beat her to the spot, blocking her from opening it. “Emma, what were you doing around five this morning?”

      “Sleeping.” Her answer came out fast, but it slipped up at the end, almost a question.

      “So there’s no way it was your car I heard, right?”

      Her profile stayed stoic for all of three seconds before cracking into something near embarrassment. “Before I left last night, I wanted to wait it out. Make sure there wasn’t an emergency or that you didn’t need me right away. And then I fell asleep in my car.”

      “Are you serious?” His voice dialed up to a nine. She’d slept out there almost all night? In the cold?

      “I promise it wasn’t planned. And I’m so sorry I woke you. If I hadn’t, Hudson might have kept sleeping.” She huffed. “It was stupid of me to let that happen.”

      “It was stupid, but not because you woke me. I could care less about that. And I’m not worried about Hudson being up for a few minutes. He did great. But I am concerned about you. Emma, you can’t be doing stuff like that. You need to take care of yourself. Hudson and I will be fine. And I’ll call you if we’re not. Okay?”

      Her mouth pursed to one side. “I just...needed

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