by Holly Jacobs
She wanted to ask what but couldn't find the words.
Daniel leaned across the couch and gently touched her cheek with his work-roughed hand. "And it's not only Brandon, though I really do care for him. It's you, too, Michelle. You all on your own, apart from him. You mean something to me." He trailed his finger down her cheek. "We've skirted around this attraction. As if we could ignore it. But, Michelle, I can't ignore it anymore."
She placed her hand on top of his and gently pulled it from her cheek. She pulled it below her shoulder level, when he stopped cooperating and moved his hand, and the other, around the back of her neck. Then gently, not forcing the issue, he pulled her to him. Slowly, with the lightest of touches. Leaving her all the time in the world to move away. To stop this from going where she sensed it might be going.
The problem was, she didn't want to stop it.
Brandon was right, she'd been programmed to be the good sister. To follow the rules and never make impetuous decisions.
This one time, she didn't want to analyze, didn't want a list. . .she just wanted to jump. She knew if she did, Daniel would catch her.
She moved forward and, when their lips met, the touch was what she'd somehow known it would be. A perfect fit.
This time, the kiss began as softly as the first one, but soon became intimate. Desire was there. Attraction. And not just a physical attraction. Everything about Daniel McLean touched her. And touching him like this, running her fingers along the curve of his back as he bent slightly to kiss her, felt right.
It felt good.
It felt like coming home.
She'd heard that phrase before. And she knew what it meant. She felt that way every time she pulled into her driveway. It wasn't the house that was her home. It was knowing Brandon was there. He was home.
And this man, this practical stranger, felt the same way.
Daniel pulled back from the kiss and it felt like a physical loss. "I want you," he said, his voice husky with need. "I know we haven't known each other long. And I'm willing to wait if that's what you want. But if that is what you want, pulling back from this—from you—will be the hardest thing I've ever done."
The rational side of Michelle knew she should say, No, we can't. She should pull back, walk away. And up until now, she'd always felt that her rational side made up the greatest percentage of who she was. Although right now, she wasn't thinking with logic as she said, "Yes. I don't want to talk this to death. I don't want to analyze. I just want you."
She stood and, feeling totally out of character, she took his hand and led him to her room. She thought about saying something, but she couldn't think of anything to say. Obviously, neither could he. They were silent as they entered the bedroom.
Michelle stood there awkwardly for a moment, then he took her other hand in his and pulled her against him.
That's all it took.
They kissed again. A long introduction to what was to come.
It touched her in a way she couldn't quite decipher and analyze. And as she relaxed in Daniel's arms, she didn't even try. For once, she simply allowed herself to accept the here and now.
And here and now, she was totally content.
DANIEL STARED at the incredible woman in his arms. She'd fallen asleep after they'd made love for the second time.
She was the most open, giving woman. Not that it surprised him. Michelle gave of herself continuously—with Brandon, at school, with her friends.
When he looked back on this first time with Michelle he knew he'd remember her laughter. And the way she'd looked up at him. Everything was there in that one look. He could read her better than he ever had.
She'd wanted this. She was afraid of what it would mean, but she hadn't let that stop her.
And there was something else there, as well.
Something he hoped he was reading right. She cared for him.
At that moment he realized just how much she'd come to mean to him.
He admired her. She was a strong, independent woman, able to stand on her own two feet and yet able to open her heart to a nephew she hadn't even known existed.
She was beautiful. Not in a loud, fashion-model beauty. No, hers was a quieter type. The kind that required you to see beyond the businesslike facade she wore so easily.
He cared about her. Cared about her in a way that didn't involve Brandon—whether or not he was Brandon's father.
Caring didn't seem a strong enough word.
He was considering other definitions of his feeling for Michelle, when her eyes sprang open.
It was like a blind that had sprung back up.
Gone was the relaxed, confident, laughing woman he'd just made love to. In her place was a woman who looked at the clock with panic in her expression. "Brandon's supposed to be home in ten minutes."
"What?"
"Ten minutes. Carly's bringing him home." She paused a moment, then added, "And we're naked, Daniel." She was already sitting up, ready to jump into action.
"Deep breath, Michelle. I'm sure we can de-naked ourselves in ten minutes," he joked.
But the joke fell flat. She was in a panic. "Come on, move!" She was already scooping up clothes and hurrying into the bathroom.
He got out of bed and even went so far as to remake Michelle's bed. It didn't look quite the same as when they'd come in. He suspected he'd done the myriad pillows wrong, but it was close.
"Hurry up, downstairs," she called.
He followed her back down the stairs and into the living room. As they entered he noticed she'd been wrapping gifts. There was a pile of department-store bags, as well as a couple wrapped presents. "How about I help you wrap? It will look totally innocent when Brandon comes in."
She nodded and hurried to the pile. "Here." She thrust a bookstore bag at him. "Wrap this one."
He opened the bag and found a beautiful edition of Herbert's Dune. "Oh, I loved this book."
Michelle was busily opening another bag but looked up. "Oh, yes. Me, too. Brandon's started reading a lot of science fiction lately. I thought this was a good choice."
He wanted her to relax, so he tried to distract her from her anxiety by asking, "Did you get him the rest of the series?"
"I thought I'd let him try this one out, and if he liked it, I'd buy more."
"Oh." Daniel had been wondering about gifts the past few days. "What's in the big one?"
"A gaming system he wanted." She glanced at the gift and smiled, finally seeming as if she'd calmed down. "It's wrapped in a bunch of boxes, and there's duct tape involved. I didn't want him guessing."
"It wasn't simply that you didn't want him to guess what it was—you enjoy driving him nuts, too."
"Guilty as charged. An added benefit. Brandon is very adept at unwrapping and rewrapping gifts to peek. I enjoy making it tough."
"I've been trying to decide what to give him."
"Daniel, I know this sounds totally syrupy, but really, the biggest gift you could give him, you already have. A gift of time, and concern. That's the best."
"Thanks." He paused, not wanting to throw her back into a state of panic but needing to know. "Michelle, about what just happened."
"Sorry. I. . . From the little things Brandon has said, Tara wasn't overly discreet with her boyfriends. He was still little, but I'm sure it was confusing. I had a boyfriend when he came to live with me, but he didn't stick around. He didn't want to be tied down with a kid, so we broke up. There have been dates since, but nothing like. . ." She hesitated. "Nothing serious. Brandon's older now, but I still wouldn't want to do anything to confuse him. And now that we've got that out of our system, we won't need to worry about it happening again."
"Out of our system?" Daniel was about to inform her that making love to her didn't purge the fact that he wanted her. It intensified it. "Michelle—"
"Oh, there's lights in the driveway. That's got to be them. Can you finish off the present before he comes in? I don't want him to see." And with that she practically bou
nded to the door.
Saved by the headlights, he thought as he wrapped the book.
Not really saved. She'd simply forestalled the conversation that he was going to have with her.
He heard her open the door and heard Brandon say, "Where's Dan?"
"He's in the living room wrapping one of your gifts, so don't go charging in until he tells you it's clear."
There was a thud and some noise, and Daniel hurriedly got the book covered in paper.
"Hey, Dan, I'm home. Aunt Shell said to be sure it's clear before I come in."
"Give me a second to tape this last side." He folded the edge into a little triangle, and pulled it to the back of the book, then taped it down. "All clear. You won't know what it is."
Brandon ran into the room. "Hey, I didn't think you were coming over today, or else I'd've come straight home."
"I haven't been here that long."
"There's a lot of snow on your car."
He felt stuck for an answer. "Well, I guess I've been here long enough to get snow on the car, but I was helping with Christmas wrapping, so the time passed fast."
"Hey, what's this one?" He pointed to the package Michelle had said contained his gaming system.
Michelle grinned. "Daniel's been sworn to secrecy, so no grilling him for hints."
"Maybe a little hint?" Brandon wheedled.
"Sure," Michelle said, a teasing glint in her eye. "Whatever's in that box is smaller than a car."
"I bet Dan can come up with a better hint than that," he groused.
"Sure," Daniel said, getting into the rhythm of Michelle's idea of a hint. "Whatever's in that package is bigger than a nail."
"Come on you, two."
Michelle smiled a wicked grin. "It's smaller than a whale and it's not alive."
"It's bigger than a pebble," Daniel added helpfully, "but not as round."
"Yeah, you two are soooo funny," Brandon said in a way that let them know they weren't funny at all to him. "I'm glad you're enjoying this."
"Adults learn early on to take their pleasures wherever they can." At the word pleasure Michelle glanced at him, then turned a lovely shade of pink.
The fact she was blushing was sweet. It touched something in Daniel.
"I'm going to put my stuff away if you need to finish up in here," Brandon said.
"Give me five minutes. . .no cheating and trying to peek," Michelle warned.
"As if. I'm not a kid anymore, Aunt Shell." He stomped toward the hallway.
"Oh, I forgot. You're so old now," she called after him.
Brandon turned around. "Hey, I'll be driving in three years."
The smirk disappeared from Michelle's face. "That was just mean, Bran."
"She hates me talking about that," Brandon said to Daniel. "She doesn't want to teach me."
"It's not so much I don't want to teach you as it is I'm terrified of teaching you."
Daniel found himself offering, "I could help with that, if you like."
The implication that he'd still be around three years from now wasn't lost on Michelle. He could see it in her expression. "We have a lot of time before we have to worry about driving lessons," she said. "Right now, go put your stuff away, Bran, while I clean up in here."
Brandon ran out of the room and up the stairs.
"Michelle, I noticed."
"Noticed what?" She took the couple presents yet unwrapped and stuffed them in a bag, then took the bag to the coffee table, which was very chestlike. She opened it, shuffled around some blankets and stuffed the remaining gifts underneath.
He waited until she finished. "Michelle." She finally looked at him. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm not waiting for some test result to decide. I'm in this, unless you kick me out." He wanted to add, Don't kick me out, but it sounded rather pathetic even as he thought it, so he refrained.
"It's easy to say you're in now. It's only been a couple weeks. There's a sense of novelty to having a boy who thinks you hung the moon. But how about a month from now? Six months? What if you're busy at work, or busy with a new relationship? What if Brandon's going through a rebellious phase and driving you nuts? Don't make promises you might have to break."
"Michelle." He stood and walked over to her and gently took her face in his hand. "I need you to pay attention here. I'm not the kind of guy who walks away. Tara left me and never told me about Brandon, or I'd have been here all along. I know you get busy during tax season, right? That doesn't mean you shuffle Brandon off on someone else. You make it work. Well, I'm planning to make it work, whether he's mad at me, or I'm busy. I'm in it. As for the comment about a new relationship, I'm not looking for one of those."
"Sometimes you're not looking and they just fall into your lap." She broke the contact, bending to finish cleaning up the paper.
"I know," Daniel said softly. "I wasn't looking for one when I found—"
"All clear?" Brandon called from the steps.
When I found you—that's how he'd planned to finish the sentence. But since Brandon was right outside the room, he didn't. "We'll finish this discussion later."
Chapter Ten
Daniel hadn't been sure what sort of reception he'd get on Tuesday. He kind of hoped Michelle would go all soft and doe-eyed when he walked in. Maybe she'd blush again. Instead, she was in her professional mode.
She was polite.
Nice even.
She spoke to him. No, she spoke at him. She didn't talk to him. It was as if she had a bubble around her. He could see her through it, but he couldn't get close.
"Can we do dinner tonight?" he asked over the hot glue gun he was using to affix tiny red bows to the punched-tin ornaments. She glanced at Brandon, who'd obviously overheard his quiet question and was nodding so hard Daniel wondered if his neck would be injured.
"Sure," she said.
After they finished their craft-a-thon, they headed back to the Cornerstone. Brandon had kept the conversation going, talking excitedly about hockey tryouts.
"I have a favor to ask," Michelle said when Brandon went to the restroom.
"Anything."
"Tomorrow, Carly graduates in the evening. I wondered if you might like to watch Brandon? He's too old for a babysitter, but Carly, Samantha and I were going to go out afterward, and I hate leaving him alone all night."
"That's not you asking me for a favor, that's you doing me one. Thanks. I'd love to. The two of us can manage dinner and homework."
"You're sure it won't be an inconvenience?" she asked, as if she hoped he'd say yes.
"Are you sure you want me to?" he countered.
"Of course, I do, or I wouldn't have asked."
"Then, yes. I'll be there after school, and if you don't mind, I'll take Brandon back to my place for dinner, and then we'll come into town and I'll just hang out and wait for you to come home."
"His bedtime is ten, although we don't call it a bedtime," she warned with the ghost of a smile. "Thirteen is too old for bedtimes."
"I'll see to it."
"Thanks."
"No, thank you." He knew he should just leave well enough alone, but he added, "Can we talk. . .I mean really talk, about yesterday?"
"We should," she said reluctantly. Her expression said she'd rather do just about anything else. "I—"
"Hey, are we doing dessert?" Brandon asked as he returned from the restroom.
The moment was broken, but Daniel promised himself they'd talk soon. Tomorrow night after she got back from her friend's graduation, they'd have their talk, whether she liked it or not.
"OH, COME ON." Carly shook her head as she drove the minivan and glanced into the back seat. "Seriously, Samantha, turn off the waterworks."
"But you just graduated," Samantha blubbered from the back seat, sitting between Sean and Rhiana. "You, Carly Lewis, are a nurse. You're a sister nurse." She leaned forward and hugged Carly around the seat, not for the first time.
"If we get in an accident, I'm going to be an R.N. who never gets to practic
e," Carly grumbled, though Michelle was pretty sure, she was enjoying the fuss, even though she'd never admit it.
Michelle was sitting in the front passenger seat, and was less huggy but just as emotional. She wouldn't have thought she would be, but watching Carly walk across the stage and move her tassel from one side to the other touched her. She could imagine Brandon doing the same thing in four years, graduating from high school. Then again, four years after that when he graduated from college, too.
"Tonight, we're celebrating," Carly announced. "A raucous celebration, not a maudlin one."
"Okay, Webster," Rhiana said with the perfect teen I'm-embarrassed-by-my-mother inflection. "We know you're a college graduate, you don't have to pull out all your five-dollar words to remind us."
"Tonight I will definitely be using every five-dollar word in my repertoire," Carly assured her with undisguised glee. "I am Samantha's sister nurse. A nicely signed diploma that I plan to take to North American Gallery next week and get framed as my Christmas present to myself."
"Don't listen to her, Mom," Sean said. "We're proud of you."
"Suck-up," Rhiana groused.
"Kids, we have guests in the car, and only a few more minutes until we get to your father's house. Do you think you can behave that long and impress Mrs. Williams and Ms. Hamilton with how sweet my children are?"
"It'll be tough, Mom, but I'll try," Sean teased. "I'm sure they've already noticed my sweetness. I mean, come on, Mom, how could they miss it?"
"Stuck up, suck-up," Rhiana repeated.
"Sorry, Samantha and Michelle. My children have no manners."
"But we do have a mother who's a nurse, so maybe we'll learn to be compassionate?" Rhiana teased. "Compassion is better than manners."
"Both attributes are preferable," Carly said with prim teasing.
"Webster," Rhiana muttered loud enough to be sure her mother heard her.
Five minutes later, the kids were dropped off at Carly's ex's, and the three of them went to Colao's for a late dinner.
"Wear your cap," Samantha told Carly as they got out in front of the westside restaurant. "You don't have to wear the gown, but come on, give me a thrill. . .wear the cap."