by Cindy Kirk
Meg scooted close and wound her arms around his neck. “Lexi’s house had mistletoe everywhere. When we were leaving I found myself thinking that it was a shame.” She pulled her lips together to form a pout. “No kisses for Meg beneath the mistletoe this year.”
Perhaps she should have stopped there. But she was having too much fun. She placed the back of her hand against her forehead and heaved a melodramatic sigh. “Poor, poor Meg.”
She expected Cole to laugh. To her surprise, his expression turned solemn. “Are you telling me you’d have kissed me at the party, in front of all those people?”
“Well, I wouldn’t have gone crazy and stuck my tongue in your mouth, if that’s what’s worrying you,” Meg said with a throaty chuckle. “But you bet your cup of cider I’d have kissed you underneath the mistletoe.”
A pleased look filled his eyes and his hand slid up her neck, getting tangled in her hair. “If you had kissed me, I’d have kissed you back. Just. Like. This.”
Meg didn’t have time to react when suddenly his lips were on hers. A firm kiss that let her know it wasn’t going to end anytime soon. A surge of desire rose inside her. Her breasts tingled and an ache took up residence low in her belly.
As they continued to kiss, the weight of his body pushed her down onto the cushions. Moving from her mouth, his lips traced the line of her jaw, his breath warm against her throat. She shivered and arched her neck, reveling in the fiery sensations sweeping like an out-of-control wildfire through her body.
Meg wanted Cole in a way she couldn’t ever remember wanting anyone before.
His hand closed over her breast just as a plaintive voice filtered down the stairs.
“Mommy. Daddy,” Charlie called. “My tummy hurts.”
Cole’s hand stilled.
Meg’s eyes met his. Her lips quirked upward. “Busted.”
He grinned. “Again.”
With a sigh of regret Meg pulled to her feet.
“Is he calling for Joy and Ty?” Cole pushed himself upright. “Or for us?”
“Does it matter?”
“Good point.”
“I’m coming, sweetie,” she called out loudly enough to reach the top of the stairs.
To her surprise Cold struggled to his feet. “I’m coming with you.”
“But the stairs…”
“Don’t worry. I won’t slow you down,” he said. “I’ll follow.”
“But—”
“I want to be there,” Cole said. “I want Charlie to know that while you’re there for him, I am, too. We’re a family, after all.”
Family. Meg sure liked the sound of that word.
Contentment slid through her veins like warm honey. She crooked her arm through Cole’s. “On one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“If Charlie wants me to sing him to sleep like he did before, you have to promise not to laugh.”
Chapter Fourteen
Two days later, even before Cole stepped out of the shower, he knew in his gut that it would be a good day. During the night the snow had stopped falling, the sun now shone brightly and his relationship with Meg was on the upswing.
When Cole saw the DNA testing kit in his underwear drawer, he experienced a surge of excitement. Ever since he’d arrived in Jackson Hole, he’d been waiting for just the right opportunity to get a sample from Charlie.
The little boy was used to the old-fashioned thermometer popping in and out of his mouth. Taking four cheek swabs should be a breeze. All Cole had to do was figure out how to get the samples in the mail.
With below-freezing wind chills, leaving a package out for the mail carrier didn’t seem prudent. He could hardly ask Meg to hand it to the postman without prompting a slew of questions. And, at this point, he didn’t want to involve her in this matter until he knew if Charlie was indeed his son.
After pulling on his jeans, Cole tugged a University of Texas sweatshirt over his head then put on his shoes. He secured the brace on his knee then opened the drawer again, letting his gaze linger on the package containing the testing supplies.
Yes, today would be a perfect day. All he had to do was figure out how to get the envelope in the mail.
“This is fabulous coffee.” Meg peered at Cole over the rim of her mug. As far as she was concerned, nothing beat a good cup of joe in the morning.
“Umakkamecrazy is the perfect blend for any time of day,” Cole said, sounding more like the CEO of the fastest-growing coffee chain in the United States than her housemate. “How was your night?”
Her lips tipped in a wry smile. “You mean after I ran into you skulking around the kitchen and screamed bloody murder?”
“Hey, I was thirsty,” he said. “I was as surprised as you were.”
Meg sincerely doubted that. At 2:00 a.m., she’d slipped downstairs to get a snack. When she’d bumped into a strong, muscular chest in the dark, she’d almost peed her pants. Nope, she could guarantee she was the one who’d been more surprised.
“It was a rough night,” Meg said. “Charlie’s stomach had him in the bathroom every couple of hours. Thankfully it seems better this morning and he’s able to sleep. He didn’t even wake up the last time I took his temp.”
“You have to be exhausted,” Cole said.
“I’m okay.” Meg covered a yawn with her hand.
“Remember our deal.” Cole slathered a thick swath of grape jam across his toast. “I watch Charlie this afternoon while you take a nap.”
“I haven’t forgotten,” Meg said with a sigh. “I’m just not sure there will be time.”
“Why not?” Cole’s gaze lifted from the toast. “We don’t have any plans.”
“We didn’t have any plans.” Meg stirred a spoonful of brown sugar into her oatmeal. “While you were in the shower, I got bombarded with phone calls. Our social calendar is now full.”
Okay, bombarded may have been a bit strong for two calls. But considering the phone rarely rang, it had felt like a whole lot more.
“Who called?”
“Ryan.” Meg glanced at her cell phone lying on the table and checked the time. “In fact, he should be here in about fifteen minutes.”
“What’s the occasion?” Cole asked, sounding only mildly interested.
“He didn’t say.” Meg had tried to pin down the smooth-talking attorney, but he’d been as slippery as Charlie at bathtime. “But I have a hunch he wants to talk to you about Kate.”
Cole started to laugh then stopped when she didn’t join in. “You’re serious.”
“While I don’t know for certain,” she said, “that was the vibe he was giving off.”
“I hate to burst your bubble,” Cole said, “but guys aren’t like women. Ryan isn’t going to spend all that time driving out here to talk about his girlfriend problems.”
“Believe what you want.” Meg took a bite of toast. “I grew up with brothers.”
“I still say there has to be another reason for his visit,” Cole said.
“I’ve given you my theory.” Meg pushed back her chair, other worries on her mind. “I’m going to hop into the shower.”
A thoughtful look blanketed Cole’s face. “Before Ryan gets here I think I’ll sit with Charlie for a few minutes. That way, if he wakes up, he won’t be alone.”
“That’s nice of you, but not necessary,” Meg said. “Last I checked he was sleeping very soundly.”
“I’d still like to spend the time with him,” Cole said.
“Well, if you need me I’ll be making myself presentable for company.” A tiny smile lifted the corners of Meg’s mouth. “Just in case I’m wrong and Ryan does want to visit with me while he’s here.”
“You want me to do what?” Ryan’s voice rose before the attorney reined it in and dropped it to a more conversational level.
“For God’s sake, Ry, I’m not asking you to rob a bank.” Cole spoke freely, not concerned about being overheard. Meg was upstairs while he and Ryan were in the first-floor office with
the door shut. “Just drop off the envelope at the post office in town. It already has the correct postage, so you don’t need to do anything else.”
“Does Margaret know?” Ryan asked.
“Know what?” Cole shifted in his seat, hoping his impulsive decision to ask Ryan to drop off the envelope containing his and Charlie’s DNA samples hadn’t been a mistake.
When Meg had mentioned Ryan’s visit, Cole realized the attorney could be his way of getting the samples in the mail.
“Does Margaret know you’re doing a DNA test on the boy?”
Cole hesitated, not sure whether to confirm or deny Ryan’s suspicions. “You got all that from one envelope being sent to a lab?”
“Actually, the fact that Charlie looks like you was my first clue.” Ryan leaned back in the tall wingback chair, his eyes devoid of the laughter usually found lurking in the gray depths. “Joy wanting to add you to the will, even though she’d already listed Margaret, was the second. I may not be smart enough to figure out a way to keep Kate from preferring Joel over me, but I’m not stupid.”
Meg had been right, Cole suddenly realized. Ryan had come over to talk about Kate. He forced his thoughts back to the matter at hand. “All I’m asking is that you drop the envelope off on your way home.”
“You are aware that by doing the test in this manner, the results won’t hold up in court.” Ryan’s expression turned serious and Cole could almost see him putting on his lawyer’s hat. “The chain-of-custody requirement won’t be met.”
“I understand,” Cole said. “If this comes out the way I think it will, then I’ll look at taking that next step.”
“You like Margaret,” Ryan said.
“Of course I do,” Cole admitted.
“Then, as your friend, I suggest you don’t keep this from her.” Ryan dropped the envelope into his briefcase, snapped it shut and stood.
“It’s not as simple as you’re making it sound.” Cole jumped to his feet and began to pace. “No matter what explanation I give, Meg will see the fact that Joy slept with me as a betrayal. I don’t want her feelings for the woman she considered to be her best friend tarnished unnecessarily. Especially since I may not be Charlie’s father. Joy told me herself that Ty was his dad.”
“But you could have been,” Ryan guessed.
Cole nodded. “The dates match.”
“You do have yourself a mess.” Ryan clapped Cole on his back and turned toward the door. “Tell Margaret and Charlie I said hello.”
“Don’t you want to stay? Talk about you and Kate? I assume that’s why you dropped by.”
Ryan surprised Cole by placing a hand on his shoulder. “I have to thank you.”
“Thank me?” Cole cocked his head. “For what?”
Ryan grinned. “Your issues make mine look insignificant.”
Ryan had barely walked out the front door when Meg waltzed down the stairs, dressed in jeans and a navy-and-white ski sweater.
“Was I right? Did he come to talk about Kate?” Meg asked.
Cole blinked. “What?”
“Ryan. Was his visit about Kate?” Her hazel eyes appeared green in the light. “Or something else? He looked pretty serious when he left.”
“You were right. He came to talk about Kate.”
“I hope you gave him some good advice,” Meg said, her expression earnest. “After all, that’s what friends are for.”
She really was a good gal, Cole thought. So caring. So compassionate. The more he got to know this grown-up Meg, the harder it was to reconcile her with the girl who’d betrayed his confidence back in high school. “Ryan assured me he felt better about the situation by the time he left.”
“I knew you’d come through for him.” A warmth ran through Meg’s veins. She was beginning to realize Cole was a guy you could count on. “I only hope things go as well with Ed.”
“Ed?” Cole looked up.
“Ed Rice,” Meg explained. “From high school. Tall. Thin. Prominent Adam’s apple. Some of the mean kids called him ‘beanpole.’”
The muscle in Cole’s jaw jumped. “I remember him.”
“Well, apparently Ed is now the reading specialist for the Teton County Schools.” Meg ignored Cole’s less-than-enthusiastic reaction. “He asked if he could stop over and talk to us about Charlie.”
“I didn’t know you were still in contact with him.”
There was an odd look in Cole’s eyes. If Meg didn’t know better she’d think he was jealous.
“Until today, I hadn’t seen or spoken with him in years.” Meg kept her tone matter-of-fact. “After our phone conversation, I’m now fully up-to-date. He married Brenda Carl. She was in the class behind us. They have two little girls and are expecting a baby boy in March.”
“Good for him,” Cole muttered. “Tell me again why he’s coming over?”
Clearly something was bothering Cole. Tension was rolling off him in waves.
“So what do you think?” Meg kept her tone deliberately light. “Lunch before or after Ed?”
“I’m not hungry—”
“Lunch afterward, it is.”
“You didn’t answer my question,” Cole said, trying but not quite pulling off a smile. “Why is he coming over?”
“I’m not sure.” Unease settled across Meg’s shoulders as she reviewed the conversation in her mind. “Come into the kitchen with me. I’ll make some hot tea and tell you all about the conversation. It was very strange.”
Cole followed her into the kitchen and took a seat at the table. “Strange how?”
Meg put the teakettle on the stove before sitting down opposite him. “I called Charlie’s school this morning to let them know he was sick and ask if there was any homework I needed to pick up.”
“Homework? He’s only in first grade.”
“Things have changed a lot since we were that age.” Meg smiled. Back when she was Charlie’s age they were just beginning to read. “Anyway, they put me on hold for the longest time, then Ed suddenly came on the line. For some reason the office staff at Charlie’s school had patched me through to the district office.”
“And?”
“Well, when I discovered it was Ed, I wasn’t sure what to think.”
“I remember you two being close friends.”
Meg felt her cheeks warm. “Ed had a crush on me back in high school. I didn’t return his feelings. It was…awkward.”
Cole didn’t look like he believed her but he didn’t comment.
“What do you think he wants?” he asked instead.
“All he’d say is that he needed to talk to you and me about Charlie.”
“He mentioned me?”
“He did.” Meg didn’t understand Cole’s surprise. After all, Ed had Charlie’s file. “I tried to find out more, but he just kept telling me not to worry, that we’d talk about Charlie when he came out.”
Without warning, Cole reached over and covered her hand with his. “But you are worried.”
Meg nodded, feeling the sting of tears against the back of her lids. She blinked them away, feeling foolish.
“I’m worried, too.”
She looked up and for the first time saw the concern in his eyes.
“Whatever is going on with Charlie, we can handle it,” he said. “He’ll be okay.”
“Because he has us.”
“That’s right.” Cole got up to tend to the whistling teakettle. “We’re in his back pocket.”
Chapter Fifteen
Ed Rice took a sip of coffee. Though his demeanor was calm, Cole sensed he was nowhere near as composed as he appeared. For one thing, his Adam’s apple kept bobbing up and down, and there appeared to be a sheen of perspiration on the top of his balding head. And he seemed to be avoiding Cole’s gaze.
Perhaps Meg’s suggestion that they meet in the kitchen had thrown the educator off his stride. He was dressed for business in a navy suit and red tie, and they’d placed him in a kitchen? Not to mention when they’d taken seats at the tab
le, Meg had scooted her chair closer to Cole, as if wanting to make it clear where her allegiance lay.
At that moment, the tightness gripping Cole’s chest had begun to ease.
“I was sorry to hear about Joy.” Ed kept his pale blue eyes focused on Meg. “I remember how close you two were in high school. Rarely saw one of you without the other.”
“Joy was special.” Meg sighed. “I don’t know that there was anyone I trusted more.”
“Both Joy and Ty were special,” Cole said.
For the first time, Ed shifted his gaze to Cole. “I forgot. You knew them, too.”
“Joy was my neighbor growing up,” Cole explained. “And Ty became a good friend later.”
“Of course,” Ed said. “That’s how you ended up with partial custody.”
“Meg and I have joint custody,” Cole clarified. “We both love Charlie and are concerned about the reason for your visit today.”
“While it’s wonderful to see you again, Ed,” Meg said, “I, we, really would like to know why you’re here.”
Ed cast a surreptitious look in Cole’s direction, and suddenly Cole knew why Ed had come. The temperature in the room dropped thirty degrees in a heartbeat.
Please, God, no.
“Last year Charlie’s teacher noted that he wasn’t reaching the milestones that are set for children of that age.” Ed spoke slowly, obviously choosing his words carefully. “He spoke with Ty and Joy, offering the opportunity for Charlie to participate in a program that would give him extra reading assistance.”
“How’s that been going?” Meg asked.
Time seemed to stretch and extend. Ed shifted uncomfortably in his wooden chair. “They declined to participate.”
“What?” Cole straightened in his seat. “Why?”
“Parents opt out of the additional assistance for a variety of reasons,” Ed said diplomatically. “They have to agree to work with the child every night for thirty minutes. Some won’t—can’t—commit to that amount of time.”