The Motherhood Mix-Up - Jennifer Taylor

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his son Noah. And his next words confirmed that.

      ‘I assume that you’re going to collect your son from school?’ He drew up at the traffic lights and turned to look at her. Mia steeled herself when she saw how solemn he looked. She had a feeling that she wasn’t going to like what he had to say.

      ‘Yes, I am. Why?’

      ‘Because I’d like to ask a favour of you.’ His eyes held hers fast and for some reason she found that she couldn’t look away. ‘May I go with you, Mia? And meet Harry?’

      ONCE, JUST BEFORE he had gone off to university, Leo had made a parachute jump. All his friends had been keen to try it and he’d gone along with them. In the event, most of them had chickened out so there’d been just two of them in the plane and he’d been the first to jump. As he had stood in the doorway, watching the ground rushing past below, he had felt his stomach sink with a mixture of excitement and fear. Although he had never jumped again, he remembered the feeling quite clearly. It was exactly how he felt as he waited to meet Mia’s son, scared and elated because he was about to leap into the unknown.

      ‘There he is.’

      Mia touched him on the arm and Leo flinched. He looked over to where she was pointing but he couldn’t pick out one child from another. There seemed to be a sea of small excited faces staring back at him…

      Leo’s breath caught as his eyes alighted on a sturdy little boy with dark brown hair standing up in spikes around his head. It had to be Harry; he just knew it was! Even though he would have dismissed the idea that his genes had somehow recognised those of his son if anyone had suggested it, he knew it was true.

      Anyway, the boy had his nose as well as his hair. He had his chin too and his cheekbones, he realised in astonishment. In fact, the resemblance was so marked that he couldn’t understand why Mia hadn’t noticed it. Surely she could see how alike they were, he thought as she brought the child over to meet him?

      ‘Harry, this is Leo. He’s a doctor and he works at the hospital. He very kindly gave me a lift here so I wouldn’t be late.’

      Leo had to hand it to her. Even though she must be finding it extremely difficult, there was no hint of uncertainty in her voice as she made the introductions. Her only concern was for her son and his admiration for her increased tenfold, especially when he found himself comparing the way she behaved to the way Amanda would have reacted.

      The thought of the scene his ex-wife would have created was very hard to swallow and his mouth thinned with displeasure. Harry took one look at his grim expression and scooted behind his mother’s legs. Leo took a deep breath, cursing himself for allowing thoughts of Amanda to spoil the moment. Amanda had caused enough damage without him allowing her to ruin this too.

      ‘Hello, Harry. It’s nice to meet you.’ Leo fixed a smile to his mouth but Harry obviously wasn’t convinced it was genuine. He shrank away when Leo held out his hand.

      ‘He’ll come round,’ Mia said quietly. ‘Just give him a moment.’

      She led Harry to the gate, leaving Leo to follow. There were a lot of parents milling about and they soon disappeared from view. Leo experienced a moment of panic as he peered over the crowd because he still had no idea where she lived. Maybe it was selfish but he needed a few more minutes with Harry, a bit more time to get to know his son.

      The words seemed to dance in neon-bright letters before his eyes. Harry was his son; he was more certain than ever it was true. But where did that leave Noah? He loved Noah with an intensity he had never believed himself capable of feeling. From the moment he had been handed the wrinkled, bloodied little bundle in the delivery room, he had known that he would lay down his life to protect him. Amanda had got over her longing for a child by then and hadn’t even wanted to look at the miracle they had created, but he had been entranced, thrilled, enthralled.

      When Amanda had decided after six months of motherhood that it wasn’t for her, Leo hadn’t argued and he certainly hadn’t tried to stop her leaving. He had never actually loved her but she had been sophisticated and worldly and had suited his requirements, as he had suited hers.

      Their parting had been amicable enough and he’d been relieved that he’d been left, both physically and metaphorically, holding the baby. It had meant he could bring up Noah the way he wanted, make sure Noah enjoyed a far happier childhood than he’d had. If only Amanda had stayed away none of this would have happened.

      The crowd parted and he spotted Mia and Harry standing by the gates. He hurried to join them, seeing the way the child shrank back as he approached. It grieved him that he had made such a bad impression on the boy and he promised himself that he would do everything possible to rectify it. If he was to be part of Harry’s life he wanted the child to feel comfortable around him.

      ‘I’ll run you home,’ he said, refusing to dwell on the thought that he might not get the chance to play daddy to his son. It all depended on what Mia decided and as he had no idea what that would be, he couldn’t go counting his proverbial chickens. Unlocking the car, he flipped forward the passenger seat so Harry could climb into the back. It was a tight squeeze and Leo realised not for the first time that he would have to buy something more suitable. Maybe he did love his car but with two children to consider now, it was hardly the most suitable of vehicles.

      Mia made sure that Harry’s belt was buckled then slid into the passenger seat. Leo closed the door and went round to the driver’s side. He started the engine then glanced at her, seeing the strain that had etched tiny grooves at the sides of her mouth. His hands clenched on the steering wheel because the urge to reach out and smooth them away was almost too strong to resist. However, he had to resist it, had to resist doing anything that might alienate her.

      ‘Where to?’ he asked instead, sounding brusque and cold when he had meant to sound warm and approachable for Harry’s benefit.

      ‘Straight down the road and left at the junction.’

      She glanced over her shoulder and smiled at Harry and Leo saw the little boy’s face immediately brighten as he checked the rear-view mirror before pulling out. That there was a deep and loving bond between the pair was obvious and he found himself wishing with all his heart that Noah could have had that sort of a relationship with Amanda. The problem was that Amanda put herself and her needs first every time. Noah came way down her list of priorities, somewhere below the next designer handbag she coveted or the next exotic holiday.

      Leo could feel his mouth tightening again and fought to control it. If he was to win Harry round, he not only needed Mia’s co-operation but a major re-think about his own behaviour. He sighed. He had realised from the moment he had discovered that Noah wasn’t his biological child that his life was going to undergo a massive upheaval, but only now did he understand how much he was going to have to change.

      ‘It’s the house with the red door…just there on the left. Yes, that’s it.’

      Mia gathered up her bag, trying to control the urge to leap out of the car. She wasn’t sure why she had agreed to let Leo meet Harry but it had been a mistake. She glanced round, seeing the worry on her son’s face. Although Harry was a happy and loving little boy, like most children his age he hated unexpected changes to his routine. Being ferried home by a stranger, even in such a luxurious vehicle as this, was obviously troubling him.

      ‘Thank you again for the lift,’ she said politely, turning to Leo. Although she was eager to get Harry into the house, there was no way that she was going to be rude. She summoned a smile when Leo looked at her. ‘I hope we haven’t taken you too far out of your way.’

      ‘Not at all.’ He shrugged. ‘I live in Primrose Hill so it’s only a short drive from here.’

      A short drive maybe, but there was a massive difference in property prices, Mia thought wryly, glancing at the neat little terraced house they were parked in front of. She hurriedly opened the

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