needed to prove something to himself, as well.
“You’ll have a great time,” he told the girls. “Don’t even think about me.”
Resigned, the pair hopped into a yellow sports car and backed out, bracelet-bedecked arms waving out the windows.
With a relieved sigh, Nic started to close the door when he saw Cassidy’s blue Camry pull up. All of a sudden, he was in the mood for company.
He jogged down the sidewalk to the parking lot, waited for her to kill the motor and then he opened the back door. The little dude was asleep, his head lolling to one side so that Nic felt sorry for him.
Cassidy pivoted around in the seat to stare. “Are you trying to kidnap my baby?”
“Rescuing. His neck is breaking.” He unlatched the harness and gently lifted Alex into his arms, his attention on the series of straps holding the car seat in place. “I’ll come back later and check your car seat. Did you have it professionally installed?”
Cassidy stepped out of the car and slammed the door. “No. This is the car seat your sister gave me.”
“My bad. I should have installed it properly for you that day.” He tapped his chest. “Certified baby seat installer.”
She laughed.
He shot her a mock scowl, feeling zippier by the minute.She looked pretty standing in the sunshine, her sleek blond hair catching the light. When she moved, a pair of big silver earrings danced around her face.
Even after a day’s work and with bags under her eyes, Cassidy looked good to him. He was a little worried about that. He liked girls and thought every one of them was pretty, but Cassidy had started to stand out from the crowd. Before, all the girls were friends, pals, good times, but there was something different with this lady.
Nic looked forward to finding out exactly what that delectable difference was . Nothing serious, nothing heavy, but he was intrigued.
Alex woke up and turned sleepy eyes on him. He was fond of the little dude, too.
“Don’t laugh,” he said. “Firefighters take a course in this stuff. Safety first. I know my way around a baby seat.”
“I learn something new every day.” Cassidy pulled the diaper bag and laptop from the opposite side of the backseat. She was tired, as usual. He could see the fatigue hanging off her like weights. Strong lady, this one. A do-it-or-die-trying kind of woman. He liked that about her.
“Well, add this to your list.” He followed Cassidy up the stairs where he took the key and opened the door.
She trudged inside and dumped the load on a red stuffed chair, the rare splash of color in the off-white room. “What?”
He handed Alex to her. “I’m going down to finish up dinner. The place is still a mess but the food will be awesome. I promise. You and my main man here spend some quality time, take a little rest, and then come on down.”
“I should stay home and work.”
He’d known she would argue and he was ready.
“You have to eat anyway.” She was thin enough without skipping meals. “Come on, a relaxing, painless dinner, andthen you can come back up here and work yourself into a coma. I’ll even show you my mood bowl.”
He’d meant the last crack to be funny. She didn’t bite. “Why are you doing this?”
“I told you. I’m a great guy. Irresistible.” He hoped she was buying this load of garbage. He wasn’t sure why he needed to do things for her but he did. Maybe he felt responsible because he’d been there the night of the fire. Maybe the reason was a smiley-faced orphaned boy whose eyes sparkled as though Nic was the greatest thing since milk. Or maybe it was Cassidy herself. Whatever the reason, he wanted to find out.
“Did you get everything moved in this morning?”
“My brothers helped. We dragged everything inside. I’ll need a few days to set up.”
She kicked her shoes off and settled Alex on a play mat next to the red chair. A push of the button and classical music poured out with a tinny sound. Mozart, maybe, but what did he
“You’ll have a great time,” he told the girls. “Don’t even think about me.”
Resigned, the pair hopped into a yellow sports car and backed out, bracelet-bedecked arms waving out the windows.
With a relieved sigh, Nic started to close the door when he saw Cassidy’s blue Camry pull up. All of a sudden, he was in the mood for company.
He jogged down the sidewalk to the parking lot, waited for her to kill the motor and then he opened the back door. The little dude was asleep, his head lolling to one side so that Nic felt sorry for him.
Cassidy pivoted around in the seat to stare. “Are you trying to kidnap my baby?”
“Rescuing. His neck is breaking.” He unlatched the harness and gently lifted Alex into his arms, his attention on the series of straps holding the car seat in place. “I’ll come back later and check your car seat. Did you have it professionally installed?”
Cassidy stepped out of the car and slammed the door. “No. This is the car seat your sister gave me.”
“My bad. I should have installed it properly for you that day.” He tapped his chest. “Certified baby seat installer.”
She laughed.
He shot her a mock scowl, feeling zippier by the minute.She looked pretty standing in the sunshine, her sleek blond hair catching the light. When she moved, a pair of big silver earrings danced around her face.
Even after a day’s work and with bags under her eyes, Cassidy looked good to him. He was a little worried about that. He liked girls and thought every one of them was pretty, but Cassidy had started to stand out from the crowd. Before, all the girls were friends, pals, good times, but there was something different with this lady.
Nic looked forward to finding out exactly what that delectable difference was . Nothing serious, nothing heavy, but he was intrigued.
Alex woke up and turned sleepy eyes on him. He was fond of the little dude, too.
“Don’t laugh,” he said. “Firefighters take a course in this stuff. Safety first. I know my way around a baby seat.”
“I learn something new every day.” Cassidy pulled the diaper bag and laptop from the opposite side of the backseat. She was tired, as usual. He could see the fatigue hanging off her like weights. Strong lady, this one. A do-it-or-die-trying kind of woman. He liked that about her.
“Well, add this to your list.” He followed Cassidy up the stairs where he took the key and opened the door.
She trudged inside and dumped the load on a red stuffed chair, the rare splash of color in the off-white room. “What?”
He handed Alex to her. “I’m going down to finish up dinner. The place is still a mess but the food will be awesome. I promise. You and my main man here spend some quality time, take a little rest, and then come on down.”
“I should stay home and work.”
He’d known she would argue and he was ready.
“You have to eat anyway.” She was thin enough without skipping meals. “Come on, a relaxing, painless dinner, andthen you can come back up here and work yourself into a coma. I’ll even show you my mood bowl.”
He’d meant the last crack to be funny. She didn’t bite. “Why are you doing this?”
“I told you. I’m a great guy. Irresistible.” He hoped she was buying this load of garbage. He wasn’t sure why he needed to do things for her but he did. Maybe he felt responsible because he’d been there the night of the fire. Maybe the reason was a smiley-faced orphaned boy whose eyes sparkled as though Nic was the greatest thing since milk. Or maybe it was Cassidy herself. Whatever the reason, he wanted to find out.
“Did you get everything moved in this morning?”
“My brothers helped. We dragged everything inside. I’ll need a few days to set up.”
She kicked her shoes off and settled Alex on a play mat next to the red chair. A push of the button and classical music poured out with a tinny sound. Mozart, maybe, but what did he
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