The Baby Switch!

by Melissa Senate

  She entered the diner just as Norah was turning over the open sign.

  Norah rushed over for a hug, and Shelby was so done from the day she practically went limp in her sister’s arms. Norah took Shane’s carrier and set it down on the counter. “One slice of chocolate cream pie and a lemon seltzer coming up. You okay?”

  She waited until the fortifying pie was in front of her before answering. “Liam is moving in. With Alexander. Neither of us can bear to be away from Shane and Alexander, so it just makes sense to be together.”

  Norah’s mouth dropped open. “Moving in? Shelby, are you sure?”

  “I just know that I held Alexander tonight for the first time and I couldn’t give him back. I didn’t want to give him back. And it was the same when Liam held Shane.”

  “Oh, Shelby. I can totally understand that.”

  She forked a piece of pie, her appetite for her favorite dessert barely there. “I can’t think straight. I can’t see straight. Up is down, right is left. I need him and Alexander around me. Liam’s going through the same thing I am. I can be a mess without having to say a word. He instantly knows how I feel. It’s a comfort.”

  Norah nodded. “Well, if he so much as talks about trying to gain custody of Shane, you call David, you hear?”

  “No one is talking about custody—at least until the DNA test results come in. And then, who knows? I have no idea what’s going to happen, Norah.”

  “What’s this about custody?” Shelby’s mother asked, coming through the swinging door of the kitchen, her blond hair in a short ponytail. “Ooh, there’s my precious grandbaby,” she said, beelining for Shane in his carrier on the counter. She smothered her grandson with kisses, then noticed Shelby’s expression. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

  “I’ve got news, Mom. Can you grab Aunt Cheyenne?”

  “Everything okay, Shel?” Arlena Ingalls asked, her hazel-green eyes worried.

  She shook her head. “No.”

  “Oh, God.” Her mother’s eyes filled with tears.

  “I’m not sick,” Shelby assured her. “It’s nothing like that. But something crazy has happened.”

  Her mother bit her lip and hurried into the kitchen, then came out with Aunt Cheyenne. The Ingalls women were strong stock and Shelby knew she could count on them—for support, for advice.

  Norah squeezed Shelby’s hand in commiseration, and as her mother and sister stood behind the counter, staring at Shelby, she launched into the whole story. Starting with the call from the Wedlock Creek Clinic’s administrator and ending with Liam packing his bags to move in with Alexander.

  And then after a barrage of questions she couldn’t really answer, they hugged her one by one and sent her home with a quiche Lorraine, a chicken pot pie, and three kinds of dessert pie, her favorite chocolate cream, a cherry and Arlena Ingalls’s famed Comfort Custard Pie.

  “It’s gonna be okay,” her sister said at the door. “It will.”

  “Just be careful, Shel,” her aunt Cheyenne said, tossing her long auburn braid off her shoulder. “You say this Liam Mercer seems kind and reasonable, but the DNA test results aren’t in yet. When those results say that Shane is his biological son, all hell is gonna break loose.”

  “That’ll make Alexander Mercer my biological son,” she reminded them. “We’re both in the same boat in very choppy, uncertain waters.”

  “I’m just saying, Shelby—he’s a Mercer. His family is philanthropic and all that but they’re also ruthless when it comes to business.”

  Shelby’s stomach twisted. “Babies are hardly business.”

  “To Mercers?” her mother said. “Maybe they are.”

  Shelby frowned and was afraid she was going to burst into tears so she gripped the door handle.

  “Honey, I’m not trying to scare you. I’m just trying to tell you to keep your guard up. Okay?”

  Shelby hugged her mother, the tears pricking, anyway. “Oh, trust me. My guard couldn’t be up higher.”

  Suddenly, three Ingallses were hugging her and then Shelby picked up Shane’s carrier and left, her heart so heavy she had to stop three times to catch her breath on the ten-minute walk to her apartment.

  Chapter Five

  As Liam pulled up into a spot in front of Treasures, he glanced up at the two-story brick building, lights glowing from behind curtains in the apartment windows above the shop. He had no idea how he was going to live in this tiny apartment with a woman who stole the air around him because she was so vital to him and with two babies who each made his heart stop for very different reasons.

  He’d make it work. To have Alexander and Shane both living with him, anything would be worth it.

  He made five trips from the car to the side doorway that led directly up to the apartment, then rang the bell.

  When Shelby opened the door, he was again struck by how moved he was. Not just because she was so pretty, her face scrubbed clean, her blond hair pulled back into a ponytail, jeans and a yellow hoodie on her tall, lean form. When he looked at Shelby Ingalls, even when he just thought about her, he felt rooted in the world, which was nuts. He’d just met the woman.

  But their lives, the most important thing in their worlds, were now so entwined that he wanted to be connected to Shelby at all times. Must be why he was okay with moving into this little, strange place above a dusty shop full of old things. He could have insisted on them all moving to his ranch house, which had even too much room for four people, especially when two of them were itty-bitty. But this was Shelby’s domain and he wanted to be in it.

  She was Shane’s mother. The mother of his biological son. And she was the biological mother of Alexander. His life.

  “I’m not sure my apartment is big enough for all that,” Shelby said with a smile as she looked down.

  “Well, I had to take Alexander’s rocking bassinet—he sleeps it in like a champ. And his favorite bouncer seat. And his tummy time mat. And the lullaby player. A few packs of diapers, wipes, his clothes, pj’s, favorite blankets, stuffed animals and chew toys, and I’m a walking baby store.”

  Shelby laughed. “I’ll help lug it. First, let me take this little guy up.” She smiled at Alexander. “You’re going to like the apartment,” she whispered to the sleeping baby as she took his carrier. “Your buddy is up there and you’re going to share his nursery. I painted the stars on the ceiling myself.”

  Liam loved how sweet she was to Alexander, how she talked to him, the catch in her voice. He wanted to take the carrier out of her hands and just hold her for a few minutes right here in the illumination of the overhead light, tell her this new beginning was going to work out fine. But instead, he grabbed the bulky exersaucer and followed her through a side door that led directly up a flight of stairs to the second floor and bypassed the need to go through the shop. Focus on why you’re here—the babies, he told himself. And stop focusing on Shelby herself. “I told him all about the nursery on the way over.”

  She glanced behind her, that smile lighting up the dimly lit stairwell. “Did he say anything back?”

  “He said he can’t wait to be Shane’s roomie.”

  Shelby laughed and went into the nursery, where she left Alexander in his carrier for the meantime, and Liam put the exersaucer in the living room. They raced back downstairs. She grabbed the two garment bags, which held his suits for work, and Liam took the bassinet and two duffels. Three trips later, everything was inside.

  “Well, Alexander is fast asleep in his bassinet,” Liam said as they stood in the nursery.

  “Shane, too,” she said, reaching into his crib to caress his little head.

  They backed out of the room, leaving the door just slightly ajar. He followed Shelby into the living room and sat beside her on the big overstuffed red couch. He liked the apartment more than he’d expected. It was both soothing and colorful, cozy and practical, particularly w
ith a baby living here—correction, two babies—and just plain inviting. He was used to his ranch with its brown leather couches and more stark furnishings, but he liked it here.

  “I told my family what’s going on,” she said when she came from the kitchen with a tray holding two mugs of coffee.

  Liam added cream and sugar and took a sip of the needed hot brew. “Did they react like mine?”

  She smiled. “Not quite, but they did warn me to be careful.”

  “Careful?”

  “The Mercer name carries a lot of weight, Liam. You know that.”

  He put down his mug and took both her hands in his. “I’m going to say this again, Shelby. As many times as I need to. I will not do anything to hurt you. I will not attempt to take Shane away from you. I can’t say it any more black-and-white than that. And I hope you won’t attempt to take Alexander from me.”

  The relief that came over her must have been very strong because she flung her arms around him, and he held her tightly, resting his cheek against the top of her head. “We’re in this together, Shelby.”

  She nodded, then pulled away. “I feel better.” She tucked her legs underneath her and picked up her mug of coffee. “You weren’t married to Alexander’s mother?”

  Liza’s face floated into his mind and he tried to push it out. He couldn’t think about Liza without feeling a hard punch of guilt.

  He shook his head. “We only dated for a few weeks. My cousin Clara wanted to adopt a dog, so we went to the animal shelter to check them out. Liza worked there. That’s how we met.”

  She smiled. “Did your cousin adopt a dog?”

  “Sure did. She went in wanting a dog that didn’t shed, bark and was completely trained in every regard. She left with a German shepherd mutt she fell in love with at first sight. He sheds, barks and is only a quarter trained. Meaning he’ll do anything you say for a rawhide bone. His name is Bixby and now she has about a hundred lint rollers.”

  “I’ve always wanted a dog, but I inherited Luna from my grandmother five years ago and I don’t think she’d appreciate a dog in the place.”

  “Ah, so that’s what that black-and-white fuzzy thing I almost tripped over was—your cat.”

  Anything to delay talking about Liza. And how he’d let her down.

  She smiled. “So you met Liza at the shelter...” Shelby prompted.

  So much for changing the subject. “We were as different as night and day, but I liked her a lot. She was a real free spirit, into hiking and nature. She couldn’t believe she fell for a corporate stooge.”

  Shelby smiled. “I totally get it.”

  “Well, somehow, we connected. We spent a lot of time together. She liked being out at my ranch, despite the lack of animals. Just to breathe in all that country Wyoming air. But then honesty came between us.”

  “Honesty?” she asked, wrapping her hands around her mug.

  “We were talking about what we wanted from life, and I told her I had no intention of ever getting married or having children. That I was a lone wolf.”

  He paused, that hot poke of guilt stabbing at his gut.

  He felt Shelby staring at him but didn’t want to give her time or room to ask questions, so he rushed on. “I mean, I liked Liza. A lot. But I also liked things as they were. No commitment. Just two people enjoying each other’s company. No rules, no musts. Because she was a free spirit, I thought she’d understand.”

  “But she didn’t?”

  He frowned, remembering the look on Liza’s face. Disappointment. Hurt. “She told me that just because she was a free spirit didn’t mean she didn’t believe in love or forever, that in fact, love was everything to her. She said she wanted five kids. She asked me again if I was absolutely sure, if I could say with conviction that I never wanted to get married or have children. I said yes. I was sure. So she ended things.”

  He put his mug down and turned away a bit, resting his elbows on his knees, his head bowed. He hated this part of the story.

  “The night she gave birth was the first time I’d heard from her in about seven, eight months. She called me on her way to the clinic and told me she was nine months pregnant with my baby, in labor, and she was sorry she hadn’t told me. She said if anything happened to her, she left me a letter.”

  He stood up and walked to the windows, staring through the filmy embroidered curtains at Main Street in the dark, the familiar landmarks somehow comforting. There was the general store with its weather vane and silver cowboy hat atop it. The small library his mother had funded. He could just make out the Pie Diner at the tail end of the street, Pie Diner flanked by two painted wood pies, a cowboy lassoing one. He closed his eyes and kept hearing Liza’s voice.

  I’m nine months pregnant with your child.

  And the words in her letter.

  I’d never want my child to have a father who’s not interested in him or her, a father who doesn’t want the responsibility. That’s why I didn’t tell you. If anything happens to me, Liam, you’ll be the baby’s only parent, his or her only family. I have no one else, as you know. We only knew each other a few weeks, but I know you’re a good person and caring and will step up if need be. Since need be is all I’ll have, I’ll take it. This is your child. That’s all you need to know to love him. But I guess you’ll have to find that out for yourself.

  “If I’d known she was pregnant, I would have been there for her, making sure she had what she needed. Instead, she went through her pregnancy alone and she had no family. She was all alone, Shelby.”

  There it was. People let each other down. People could not be trusted, period. Even if you thought you meant well, you ended up breaking someone’s heart, ruining a year or two of their life, scarring them. He’d been hurt. He’d done the hurting. It never ended. He’d vowed not to hurt Shelby because he wasn’t romantically involved with her, never would be, despite how badly he wanted to kiss her, and could keep a solid emotional distance. As long as he kept her at arm’s length, everything would be fine. So he would.

  She got up and walked over to him, touching the back of his shoulder. “She wasn’t alone, Liam. Not really. She had her baby. When I was pregnant and here by myself, I’d just touch my belly and I’d feel better. I’ll bet Liza felt that way, too.”

  He appreciated that. He relaxed a bit, the knots in his shoulders—particularly the spot where she’d touched him—loosening. He let his mind wander to how Shelby would feel in his arms. He wanted her in his arms.

  Arm’s length, he reminded himself. That meant no touching her. No holding her.

  “You planned to never marry or have kids?” she asked, heading back to the couch.

  He turned around and sat down next to her, picking up his mug of coffee, and took a sip, wrapping his hands around the warmth of the cup. “I used to feel differently, years ago when I was young and naive. But no—I’m done with the idea of love and marriage. The kid situation took care of itself.”

  “So you adapted to parenthood, Liam. Maybe you could adapt to marriage. How could you be so sure you couldn’t?”

  “Because love doesn’t last.”

  “My parents were married for twenty-two years until my father died. They were deeply in love until my father’s last breath.”

  He glanced at her. “I’m sorry about your father.”

  “Love does last,” she said. “It does. Or it can. Even if it hasn’t for me.”

  “Or for me, Shelby. Twice I got my heart handed back to me in shards. I learned to not get emotionally invested. It’s better that way.” And given the way I ended up failing Liza when she needed me? Yes, he was done.

  Shelby tilted her head at him, those green eyes regarding him. “I’ve never seen anyone more emotionally invested in another person than you with Alexander.”

  “He’s my son. Not my girlfriend. And I don’t have girlfriends anymore. Just d
ates here and there, three-week-long relationships where everything is clear and ends with no one disillusioned.”

  She picked up a cookie from the plate on the coffee table and took a bite. “You’re a hard one. Are your parents happily married?”

  He shrugged. “Honestly, it’s hard to tell. Their marriage was all but arranged by my late grandmother, Alexandra. Alexander was named for her. She was something else. A brilliant businesswoman. My grandfather was smart and made her president of the company when the company started failing under his watch. She turned it around. She ran Mercer Industries and the family. My father really respected her. So when she pushed him to marry my mother, he complied. I guess they’re happy enough. But their marriage certainly didn’t make me think love is real or lasting or a reason to marry.”

  “A reason to marry?” Shelby repeated. “Love is the only reason!”

  “There’s also practicality.”

  “Well, I’m all for being practical and smart about how I live my life, but love and emotion can’t be bullet-pointed in a memo about how to live.”

  He laughed. “Sure it can. I make bullet-pointed to-do lists every day. Today’s got blown to bits, of course.”

  “See? Life works that way.”

  “Don’t I know it, Shelby.”

  She glanced at him, then sipped her coffee, her gaze landing on the brown bag his mother had given her at dinner. She jumped up and brought it back to the sofa. “It was nice of your mom to give it to me for Treasures.”

  “It was thoughtful. Larrisa Mercer can be very kind and loving. She can also be very, very practical.”