Читать книгу Christmas with Daddy - C.J. Carmichael - Страница 8

NICK GRAY WAS THE KIND of guy smart mothers warned their daughters about. After five years of living in the same neighborhood, Bridget had seen him with so many different women, she’d given up asking their names. In the historical novels she loved, he was the rake, the ne’er-do-well but handsome younger brother, the favorite son who always disappointed his father but was the apple of his mother’s eye.

Sometimes when Bridget looked at him, she felt a crazy, unfamiliar excitement. He made her aware of possibilities that she would never normally consider. Possibilities that were neither safe nor sensible.

It only took a few seconds for her to shake off that feeling, though. Nick was drawn to glamour, sophistication and style. The women he dated turned heads on the sidewalk. And not because they had four dogs in tow.

Just as well she wasn’t Nick’s type. She’d never been one for flirting and casual dating. Whereas even Nick’s relationship with the woman he’d married had lasted less than a year.

It was an appalling record, and she ought to think less of Nick for it. But she couldn’t help liking him, despite his rather obvious character flaws. Someone who loved dogs as much as he did, couldn’t be all bad.

He had a special affinity for her giant schnauzer Herman. Aptly named, Herman was solid, dependable, unstoppable when he wanted something. And when Nick was around, there was no doubt what Herman wanted.

She couldn’t blame him.

“I know I’m asking a lot,” Nick said. “It’s okay if you’d rather not do it.”

Now she felt guilty. Nick was a good neighbor and a friend, too. They collected each other’s mail when they went on vacations. Occasionally Nick helped her out with the dogs. Just last month when she’d been sick with the flu, he’d taken them all for a long run at the end of his shift.

But babies required a lot more time and effort than dogs.

Nick gave Herman one last scratch, then he stood and reached for Mandy. His baby daughter held out her arms to him, smiling as he drew her close.

They looked so cute together. Gosh, a guy who was good with dogs and babies. It just wasn’t fair. How was any woman supposed to resist that?

Then suddenly, for no apparent reason, Mandy started to cry. Nick’s face registered surprise as he glanced at Bridget, then back at the baby.

“Hey, what’s wrong, sweetie?”

Mandy’s cries grew louder. The dogs pulled in close to Bridget. The baby’s distress made them uneasy.

“Do you know what time it is?” Nick asked. “I forgot to put on my watch this morning.”

She shrugged. She hadn’t worn a watch, either. “Almost one o’clock,” she guessed. She and the dogs had left the house at eleven-thirty and the route through the woods usually took them about an hour and a half.

“One o’clock.” Nick seemed astounded. “I didn’t think we’d been out that long. Mandy missed her nap and her lunch.”

No wonder she was so upset. “Did you bring any food with you?”

“It didn’t occur to me. Maybe Jessica packed something in here…” Nick rummaged through the storage pouch on the back of the stroller but came up with nothing. Mandy was sobbing now, and for a guy who never seemed to lose his cool, Nick was looking pretty flustered.

“What should I do? I’ve got to get her home, but I can’t put her in the stroller when she’s crying like this.”

“I’ll push the stroller for you.” Bridget tied the dogs’ leads to the handle, then started along the path at a fast clip.

Nick fell in next to her. “Thanks a lot. I guess I should have been more prepared.” He cuddled Mandy closely. “Don’t worry, honey. Your dad’s an idiot, but he is going to feed you, eventually.”

As they made their way out of the park area onto the city streets, Bridget noticed they were attracting quite a bit of attention. A man and a woman with four dogs and a crying baby…yeah, she wasn’t too surprised people were gawking.

Nick seemed oblivious to the stares, though. He was almost panicking by the time they reached his town house. “Will you come inside?”

She didn’t have the heart to leave him to cope alone. “What about the dogs?”

“I have a fenced backyard. Will that do?”

“I’ll need to give them some water.”

“Not a problem.”

He dug into his pocket for the keys, and then, she was in a place she never thought she’d see the inside of—Nick Gray’s town house. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected. Maybe sleek furniture, an opulent TV and sound system…a round bed with satin sheets?

But his furnishings were plain and sparse. He had just one reclining chair in his living room, along with the television. In the kitchen down the hall, a newspaper was spread over a tiny oak table. Two folding chairs sat around it.

Nick must have noticed her scrutinizing the place because he apologized. “Jessica took a lot of stuff when she moved out. I haven’t been in the mood to replace it.”

He paused, frowning. “Is something burning? Hell. I forgot to turn off the coffee machine.” Still carrying Mandy, whose crying had turned into pitiful hiccups, he crossed the room and hit the off button on the coffeemaker. Then he grabbed a big bowl from a cupboard and handed it to her.

“For the dogs.” He pointed to the patio door. “You can let them out there.”

“Thanks.” She unlocked the door then released the dogs from their leashes. They rushed outside, anxious to explore. Once she had filled the bowl with water and placed it on the patio for them, she went to check on Nick.

He was kneeling on the kitchen floor, holding Mandy in one hand and pulling stuff out of a pink diaper bag with the other.

He cursed softly. “Couldn’t she have prepared one bottle at least?” He found a can of powder. “Jessica mixes some of this with water. I have no idea about the ratio.”

“Instructions should be on the can. How about I read them while you get Mandy out of her snowsuit. She must be very warm.”

A guilty look crossed his face. “Good thinking.” He unzipped Mandy’s snowsuit and for a couple of peaceful moments the baby actually stopped crying. But as he stripped off the cute yellow snowsuit, he made a face. “Oh-oh.”

Bridget glanced up from the fine print on the can. “What’s wrong?”

“She’s soaking wet. She needs a bath and a new diaper. God, I am such an imbecile.”

And then, as if to signal her agreement, Mandy started howling again.

ONE HOUR LATER Mandy had been bathed, changed, fed and lulled to sleep, in that order. Bridget did most of the work, with Nick watching, feeling like he was on the verge of having a heart attack.

Now, seeing Mandy’s peaceful face, her body curled under the flannel covers, he could finally take a deep, long breath.

“Thank you, Bridget.”

She was on the other side of the crib, looking at him with an odd smile. “You’re welcome.”

“You made it all seem easy.”

“It’s not so difficult. You just need to stay calm.”

Calm. That was funny. “I’ve given that same advice to rookie cops in dangerous situations on the street. I can keep my head when a robbery is going down. But babies are different.”

“You’ll catch on,” Bridget said gently.

“You think?”

“You’ve definitely got potential. As long as you don’t panic, you’ll be able to handle Mandy just fine.”

He wished he had the same faith in himself that she did. “I’ll still need a sitter for when I’m at work.”

Bridget broke eye contact. “I should get going.”

“Oh, no. You’re not leaving until you agree to take on the job. You’ve just proved you’re the perfect person to take care of Mandy.”

The prospect of extra money hadn’t tempted her. What would motivate someone like her? “Please, Bridget? We’ve been neighbors for years and Mandy already likes you. I’d hate to have to leave her with a stranger.”

“Not fair, Nick.” She shook her head at him. “But I will do it. If you’re willing to make a few compromises.”

Years of negotiating with two older brothers had made him cautious. “Yeah?”

“We do this the ecofriendly way. That means organic, homemade baby food, no disposable bottle liners, and definitely no more disposable diapers.”

“You want me to use cloth diapers?”

She nodded.

“God, Bridget.” Cloth diapers would be stinky. And they’d have to be washed. “Okay. But you better be worth it.”

OH, I AM, Bridget wanted to say. I am definitely worth it.

But she wouldn’t be talking about babysitting. She’d be flirting. And where that urge had come from, she wasn’t sure. The situation was far from romantic. They were talking about baby food and diapers for heaven’s sake.

The problem was Nick. If only he had the good grace to look like a respectable father. But no, even in a domesticated scene like this one, he still exuded sex appeal.

Even as she was thinking about that, he stood up and stretched out his arms, inadvertently flexing all sorts of lovely muscles for her to admire.

She shouldn’t be looking. What she should be doing was leaving. “I’d better round up my dogs and get home.”

“I’ll call them in.” As soon as Nick slid open the patio door, all four of the snowy canines barreled inside. Bridget apologized, but Nick didn’t seem too worried about the floor getting wet.

As she clipped the dogs onto their leashes, Nick’s phone rang. After his first few responses, she was amazed by the change that came over him.

Her charming, light-hearted neighbor was suddenly serious and focused. He listened intently, then said, “You bet. Twenty minutes.”

After he hung up, he tunneled his fingers through his thick dark hair, then looked at her with a speculative gleam in his eye.

Oh, boy. “What is it?” she asked cautiously.

“I’m working on this case right now. A runaway teenager. She’s only fourteen.”

“That’s young,” she said.

“By all accounts she’s a good kid, from a good family. We’d like to find her as quickly as possible, for a lot of reasons, not the least because the streets aren’t exactly a safe place for someone like her.”

She nodded, agreeing, and understanding his urgency.

“We had a possible sighting at the mall in West Hartford. My partner’s not available, so I’d like to check it out.”

“Now?” Why was she asking? Of course he had to go now. “I can stay for a while, but I have to be home by quarter to five. Foster’s owner usually picks him up around then.”

Nick’s taut features relaxed with relief. “Thank you, Bridget. You’re amazing.”

Amazing. Nick Gray thought she was amazing. Of course she knew he meant this in a platonic, thanks-for-helping-me-out-in-a-pinch way, but still it was nice to hear.

He went to his bedroom and came out wearing a holster strapped to his chest. She did her best not to stare at this visible reminder of the dangers of his job. Noticing his keys on the floor by the front door, she picked them up and passed them to him.

Bridget was struck again by the domesticity of the situation. This must be what it would be like to be married to a cop. Only, if they were married, Nick would be kissing her goodbye right now…

Right. Dream on, Bridget. You’re the babysitter, not the girlfriend.

“Thanks, Bridget. Here’s one of my new business cards. Call my cell if you need me.”

He’d told her last month about his promotion. She glanced at the card before slipping it into her pocket. “Thanks, Detective.”

He gave her a boyish grin, full of self-conscious pride. “Yeah, I’m a bigwig now. You remember that.”

“I’m impressed. But I still need to be home by four forty-five.”

He nodded.

“You won’t be late?”

“I won’t be late.”

NICK WAS late. But it was only by five minutes. She’d give him another five, Bridget decided, before she panicked.

Mandy had woken half an hour ago and Bridget had changed her diaper and given her something to drink. Now Mandy was sitting on the floor next to Lefty. The boxer had befriended the baby, not seeming to mind at all when Mandy pulled his ears or poked at his whiskers.

The other dogs were still sleeping, worn-out by the long walk and the romp in Nick’s backyard. Herman was on the floor by Nick’s recliner, while Stanley and Foster were settled on the rug by the front door. Clearly they weren’t going to be left behind when it came time to leave.

Earlier, she’d found an old towel and used it to dry the pads on the dogs’ feet, then the puddles on the kitchen floor. And she’d cleaned up the mess she and Nick had made in the kitchen preparing Mandy’s lunch.

Now with the baby happily distracted by Lefty, Bridget had nothing to do. There were bookshelves next to the television. Maybe she should find something to read. Framed photographs next to the books distracted her, though. She found one of Nick and two other men who had to be his brothers.

Nice-looking guys, all of them, with thick dark hair and likable grins. But to her, only Nick had that special something. A sparkle in his eyes, a certain slant to his grin. She’d bet he had been a handful as a little boy.

There were other photos, too. One of an older woman—probably Nick’s mom. She had the same light blue eyes…like the sky on a cold winter day.

Bridget caught her breath when she noticed a wedding photo of Nick and Jessica. Oh my Lord, his wife had made such a beautiful bride. What would it be like to be that gorgeous?

When she was younger, Bridget had often despaired of her own wiry red hair and plain features. But not anymore. Being pretty didn’t guarantee a woman love and happiness. Wasn’t Jessica the perfect example of that? She and Nick may have looked like a Hollywood couple on their wedding day, but they’d never even celebrated their first anniversary.

Bridget moved on to the next shelf, which had been dedicated to chronicling the first six months of Mandy’s life. She smiled at the image of Mandy as a newborn, in her father’s arms. Nick looked happy but nervous.

He still seemed a little nervous around his daughter. Maybe this three-week vacation of his ex-wife’s was a blessing in disguise. He needed time to get comfortable with his new role as father.

She would help him with that.

As soon as she had the thought, she realized she was overreaching. Nick’s competence as a father wasn’t any of her business. Looking after Mandy didn’t change the nature of their relationship. They were neighbors. Good neighbors who looked out for one another and offered a hand, when needed.

Nothing else.

Bridget paced the main floor, as anxious as Lefty during a thunderstorm. Nowhere did she see any preparations for Christmas. No tree, no wrapping paper, no decorations.

Guys without families probably didn’t bother with those things. But Nick had a family now. Surely he’d want his daughter’s first Christmas to be special. Maybe she should suggest…

Oh, Lord, she was doing it again. Getting too involved. How Nick decided to spend the holidays with his daughter was none of her business, either.

The dogs. They were her business. She glanced at her watch. Five more minutes had passed. Still no sign of Nick.

Okay, now it was time to panic.