Fighting for Keeps

by Jennifer Snow

A lot of help the eight-year-old would have been had this happened an hour from now. What had she been thinking, asking an overdue pregnant woman to babysit tonight?

  As the contraction passed, she led Victoria to the couch, but reached for a blanket to cover her white leather upholstery before seating her. Like the Jeep, the furniture wasn’t kid-approved and would soon have to be replaced.

  “Where’s Luke?”

  “Newark.”

  Newark. Good—only two hours away. He could still potentially make it. Picking up her phone, she hesitated.

  “You’ll have to call him,” she said handing the phone to Victoria.

  Luke had changed his number years ago and hadn’t given her the new one.

  “And maybe block the call,” she added. “He’ll never answer if he sees my number.”

  Victoria dialed while Lindsay rushed into her bedroom to get dressed. She sighed as she saw the yellow sundress hanging on her closet door. She had thirty-eight minutes to get Victoria to the clinic and get back here before Noah arrived.

  They couldn’t go out now that she’d lost her babysitter, but maybe she could invite him in for a game of Hungry Hungry Hippos with the kids.

  Give her a break for a while.

  On a new mission, she pulled on the jeans and white T-shirt she’d discarded earlier and hurried back to the living room.

  “Is Luke on his way?”

  “Yes. He said not to have the baby without him.” Victoria gripped her stomach as another contraction hit.

  Lindsay couldn’t be sure, but she thought the contractions were coming closer together. “Well, that’s the fun part about babies. They come on their own time.”

  Grabbing her flip-flops, she called down the hall. “Kids! We have to go.”

  Melissa opened her bedroom door as Caleb and Jacob came out into the hall in their pajamas. “Where’re we going?”

  “To take Victoria to the clinic.”

  “I’m watching reruns of Gossip Girl. We were both supposed to watch the marathon together,” Melissa said accusingly.

  Melissa’s ability to make her feel guilty had grown exponentially over the past few weeks. While she desperately tried to find time for her, it was challenging with four other children demanding her attention. “I’m sorry Mel, it slipped my mind.”

  “Whatever.” She went back inside her room and shut the door.

  Seriously? “Mel, come on. I’m not kidding.”

  She knew putting that extra TV in the girl’s room had been a mistake. How many times had Rachel and Nathan told her no? She glanced toward the ceiling. Would a guidebook to raising your children have been too much to ask for?

  Melissa’s stare-down when she opened the door was intense, but Lindsay was having none of it.

  “I invented that look. Go get your shoes or you’ll be getting a personal view of how babies are born.”

  Behind her, Jacob’s eyes widened. “Aunt Vic’s having her baby?”

  “Now?” Caleb asked, rushing into the living room.

  Someone was going to be a gynecologist. Of course—med school. No problem. Lindsay sighed, immediately distracted by Victoria’s cry.

  Melissa’s frown faded as she rushed to get her shoes.

  “Lindsay!”

  She stopped at the door to the babies’ room and headed back to the living room.

  Victoria was shaking her head. “You know what, I’m not doing this.” She struggled to get up from the couch and Lindsay extended a hand to help. “I’m not having a baby. In fact, I’m going back to New York. Climbing the corporate ladder wasn’t so bad.”

  “Vic...” She’d seen this before. At the point of no return, many women decided they’d changed their minds about what was about to happen.

  Victoria would get through it as everyone else did and, in a few hours...or maybe eight or nine, she’d be happier than she’d ever imagined possible. Until, of course, the kid learned to talk back.

  “Mel!”

  “Right here,” she said from directly behind her.

  “Oh. Please help support Aunt Vic on the other side,” she said.

  The three of them hobbled toward the door and Lindsay opened it, ushering Victoria outside.

  “Seriously, Lindsay, I can’t do this.” Victoria’s eyes widened as another wave of pain hit.

  Definitely closer to baby time.

  “Yes, you can. Melissa, help her to the minivan and I’ll go get your sisters.” She turned to Victoria. “Just hang in there. I’m going to get you to the clinic and Dr. McCarthy will take care of you.”

  “No.”

  “They have drugs—strong ones. The faster you get there, the faster the pain will stop.”

  Victoria began to waddle with determination toward the van.

  “Thought so,” Lindsay said as Noah’s motorcycle pulled into her driveway.

  Great, he was early.

  Then a thought hit her. Great, he was early! He could stay with the children.

  “Kids, out of the van. Go back inside,” she said.

  Melissa jutted her lip out. “I thought you said—”

  “For once, Mel, don’t argue,” she replied, turning to Noah. “Thank God you’re early.” She hugged him quickly.

  “I would have been here at noon if I’d known I’d get that kind of reaction.” He set his helmet on the bike and unzipped his leather jacket.

  The smell of his manly aftershave shook her for a second. “Yeah, date’s off.”

  He shook his head. “No way. I told you—”

  “Shh.” She swatted his arm. “Victoria’s in labor. I’m taking her to the clinic. I need you to watch the kids for, like, twenty minutes,” she said quickly, dragging him toward the house.

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes.”

  “This isn’t another excuse—”

  “Lindsay! Hurry the hell up!” Victoria yelled from inside the van.

  Noah’s eyes widened. “Okay, so what do I do with the kids?”

  “You’re asking the wrong person,” she mumbled. “The babies are asleep, just keep the other three occupied for half an hour.”

  “Whoa. You said twenty minutes.”

  She pushed him inside. “I’ll be back soon.”

  She didn’t have time to even question her decision about leaving the kids with Noah as she raced to the minivan and climbed in. She leaned across and buckled Victoria’s seat belt for the fast drive to the clinic six blocks away. “Okay, let’s go,” she said, putting the van in Reverse.

  “What if I can’t do this? I mean, physically can’t.” Victoria sounded terrified.

  Of all the people...of all the situations. How on earth was she Victoria Mason’s support system right now? Life was dishing out far too much irony these days.

  “You can and you will. One way or the other, this baby is coming out, so I need you to be strong, okay.”

  To her surprise, Victoria reached across and grabbed her hand on the wheel. “Will you stay with me?”

  Really?

  “I’m actually not working, so technically...”

  “Please, Lindsay. Rachel was supposed to be here with me, in case Luke couldn’t make it.”

  “Fine. Until Luke gets here.”

  Sorry, Noah.

  * * *

  FIVE KIDS. NO PROBLEM. He could handle this. Not that the panicking blondes had left him much choice. At least the babies were asleep. That made things a little easier.

  In the living room, Jacob and Caleb were watching cartoons. A purple monkey in red boots blew out candles on a birthday cake.

  “Hey, guys, what are you watching?”

  “Dora,” Jacob said, his eyes glued to the set.

  “Dora’s the mon
key?”

  “No, Noah. Dora is the girl. The monkey is Boots.”

  “The monkey’s name is Boots?”

  “Yes. Because he wears red boots all the time,” Caleb explained.

  He scanned the living room. Toys littered the floor and coloring sheets with crayons covered the coffee table. On the couch, a load of laundry sat waiting to be folded and on the end table, a coffee cup and wineglass sat next to a rocking chair.

  Obviously the place Lindsay started and ended her day.

  And despite how worn out she must be, she’d agreed to go out with him.

  “Where’s Melissa?”

  “In her room,” Jacob said as the cartoon’s ending theme song started to play.

  “Which one is hers?” Noah asked, standing.

  “The last one, next to the bathroom,” Jacob said as another episode of the same show started.

  Noah walked down the hall and tapped on the bedroom door. “Melissa, it’s Noah.”

  No answer.

  “Aunt Lindsay should be back soon.”

  “I don’t care,” came the reply.

  Okey-dokey.

  His cell phone signaled a new text message.

  So sorry, but I’m going to be a little longer than planned. Can you handle things for a bit longer?

  He wanted to help her, to be here for her, for whatever she needed.

  This was what she needed.

  I got this. Take your time, he texted back.

  Tapping on Melissa’s door again, he said, “Did you want to come watch—” what were the boys watching again? “—some cartoon about a monkey in boots with us?”

  “No.”

  Of course not. She was almost nine.

  “Do you want something to eat?”

  “No.”

  Wow, Lindsay hadn’t been kidding about the child’s unwillingness to leave her bedroom. They couldn’t keep taking doors off hinges. At some point she had to open up and talk to them.

  “Okay, well, the boys and I are going to order pizza. I’ll let you know when it arrives.” What kid could resist pizza?

  No answer.

  He pulled out his cell phone and hit the speed-dial button for the small pizza shop just outside of town. They didn’t normally deliver this far out, but he’d gotten one of his at-risk kids a job doing deliveries for the company the month before, so he knew he could pull some strings.

  The doorbell rang almost exactly as the pizzeria answered and Noah had to hang up to go open the door.

  A tall, dark-haired man stood on the porch, his back to him.

  “Hello?”

  The guy turned and frowned.

  Lindsay, tell me you didn’t double book yourself for two dates tonight.

  “I was looking for Lindsay,” the man said, leaning back to glance at the number on the house.

  “This is her house. Who are you?” Noah asked, blocking the entryway. If she had double booked herself, she couldn’t have picked more different men. In a pair of dark gray pants and a white dress shirt, open at the collar, the guy looked as if he’d stepped from the pages of a men’s catalog.

  “A friend. Who are you?”

  “Likewise.”

  The stare-down was intense between them until finally the other man asked, “Well, is she here?”

  “No. She had to go to work.” It was sort of true.

  “Oh. And you’re...babysitting?”

  Whoever it was knew enough about Lindsay’s current situation. “Yes. I’m Noah,” he said reluctantly, hoping to get a name out of this guy. He couldn’t remember seeing him around town before.

  “Ben Walker.”

  The children’s godfather. Nathan’s business partner. A man Lindsay had dated.

  The guy who’d hung up on her and hadn’t bothered to show up for the funeral.

  Noah’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll let her know you stopped by,” he said coldly.

  “Noah, is that the pizza already?” Caleb asked, coming up behind him in the doorway.

  “Uh, no...”

  The boy’s eyes widened. “Hey! Uncle Ben!”

  Fantastic.

  Ben smiled. “Hi, Jake!”

  “Caleb,” the boy corrected, stepping past Noah.

  “I knew that.”

  Lie. No one knew that. The boys were virtually identical.

  “Did you bring us any new video games?” Caleb asked, hugging him and glancing up eagerly.

  “As a matter of fact, I did,” Ben said.

  “Come in!” The little boy took the guy’s hand.

  Noah moved away from the door. “Sure, come in,” he muttered.

  “Jacob, look who’s here...and he brought new video games,” Caleb said, dragging Ben into the living room.

  Jacob jumped up and ran for a hug.

  An unexplainable tug wrenched at Noah’s chest. He may not know this guy, but clearly the kids were happy to see him. Would Lindsay be?

  He clenched his teeth as the guy ruffled Jacob’s hair. “Hey, buddy, is this the episode where they help save the pirates?” he asked, nodding toward the television.

  “The monkey’s name is Boots,” he said before he could stop himself.

  Ben grinned over his shoulder. “Yeah, I got that.” He scanned the room. “Where are your sisters?”

  “Abby and Mac are asleep and Mel won’t come out of her room since...” Jacob’s gaze dropped.

  Ben knelt in front of him. “It’s okay, buddy. I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner, but I’m here now. Everything’s going to be okay.”

  And despite Noah’s best efforts, he could no longer be annoyed at the man. The boys had showed more signs of life in the past three minutes than they had in a month from what he’d gathered. Maybe this guy being here wasn’t such a bad thing.

  At least not for Lindsay and the boys.

  “I checked on her, but she doesn’t want to come out. Maybe once the pizza arrives,” Noah said, not sure what to do next.

  Was Ben planning to stay until Lindsay got home? If so, should he leave? Stay? He didn’t know this guy...the kids seemed to...

  “I can get her to come out,” Ben said, moving past him into the hall.

  Really? He’d like to see him try. So far, nothing had worked.

  “Which door?” Ben asked from the end of the hall.

  Noah pointed to it and then leaned against the wall to watch.

  “Mel, it’s Ben.”

  Nothing.

  Noah couldn’t help feeling slightly satisfied. “See?”

  Ben nodded. “Mel, if you don’t want to come out, that’s totally cool...but the boys and I were about to watch Frozen.”

  The bedroom door swung open. “You brought Frozen?” she asked, wiping her cheeks quickly.

  Noah’s mouth gaped.

  “Yep,” Ben said, opening his arms for a hug.

  Okay, he may have been able to get Mel to open the door but...

  The girl rushed into his arms. “I’m so glad you’re here, Uncle Ben,” she whispered.

  Okay, then.

  The two came down the hall toward him and he forced a smile at Mel. “Hi.”

  “Is the pizza here?” she asked.

  “I’ll order it right away,” he said, reaching for his phone, but Ben stopped him.

  “Now that I’m here, you don’t have to stay. I can take it from here.”

  Noah hesitated. By the look of things, Ben had things under control for the first time since the kids’ parents had died. “I told Lindsay I’d take care of them.”

  “Trust me, it’s fine. She’ll be happy I’m here.”

  That’s what Noah was afraid of.

  CHAPTER SEVEN />
  THE SIGHT OF Ben’s Land Rover parked next to Noah’s motorcycle in her driveway made Lindsay’s heart race. So, he’d finally decided to show up. Not exactly good timing.

  Parking the minivan behind the luxurious vehicle she’d admittedly found impressive on their date, she grabbed her purse and hopped down.

  As she walked up the pathway, she noticed Noah sitting on the porch step. “Hi,” she said, stopping in front of him.

  “Hi.”

  “So, um, I’m guessing Ben’s here.” She toyed with her keys.

  “That’s one fantastic ride he has. The man has good taste.” His gaze held hers and she blushed.

  “I’ll admit, I was tempted to key it on my way past.”

  “I still might,” he said as he stood.

  She smiled. He was jealous. She wasn’t hating that.

  “I wasn’t sure if you’d have wanted me to leave but, uh...”

  “I’m glad you stayed.” She knew the kids were okay with Ben, but the fact Noah hadn’t bailed the moment he was free to go was a relief.

  “They just finished watching Frozen. Apparently that was the key to getting Mel to come out of her room.” He shoved his hands into his jeans’ pockets and descended the steps.

  “Melissa is out of her bedroom?”

  He nodded.

  “That’s great. Thank you.”

  “It was all Ben.”

  She bit her bottom lip, not sure what to say. “Well...”

  “Yeah. Right. I should go.” He paused. “By the way, how’s Vic?”

  “Harper was born twenty minutes ago. Luke made it just in time,” she said, covering a yawn with her hand. As she did, she noticed the faint fingernail marks from Victoria’s maniacal grip.

  She’d been fortunate Luke had arrived before the worst of it.

  “Harper?”

  “Yeah, in honor of Rachel and Nathan. A girl.” The name had surprised her and there hadn’t been a dry eye in the room.

  “It’s nice. Anyway, you should probably get inside.” Moving past her, he gave her shoulder a squeeze.

  “Noah, I’m sorry about tonight,” she said to his back.

  He put on his helmet. “Don’t sweat it, Lindsay. I’m not giving up.”

  * * *

  CLOSING THE DOOR to the babies’ room ten minutes later, she tiptoed down the hallway to the kitchen, looking into Mel’s and the boys’ rooms as she passed. All asleep. Amazing. She hadn’t gotten them all to sleep before ten o’clock once that month.