The sobs didn't go unnoticed by him, either, but he was surprised to realize that he was no longer affected by them. He'd seen and heard them often enough to know that she could turn them on and off at will.
"That is no longer applicable," he told her. "But even if it were, millions of women all over the country handle the twin jobs of working and raising their children."
"Well, I'm not 'millions of women'," she said indignantly. "And don't threaten again to take Tinker away from me."
"I'm not threatening you with anything," Gray said, trying to sound reasonable, but getting more and more exasperated. "I'm stating a fact. My lawyer is having the papers drawn up now, and next week we're filing for full-time custody of Tinker."
"Your daughter!" she screeched into the phone. "She's my daughter, too, and if you think I'm going to sit around and let you take her away from me, you're sadly mistaken."
For a moment he was too angry to speak, and before he could get himself under control, Bambi continued.
"It's that woman, isn't it. Eve! Boy, is she aptly named. Is she promising you Paradise? Well, just make sure she doesn't lure you into eating any apples!"
Bambi slammed down the phone, leaving Gray sputtering in frustrated rage.
Chapter Ten
The following morning, Saturday, Eve was curled up on the sofa, watching the national all-day news station and sipping her first mug of coffee for the day, when the phone rang.
It was Gray, and her heart flipped, sending her nerves into spasm. "Eve, I'm in a bind and I need help," he said apologetically. "Is there any chance Tinker and I could come over and discuss it with you?"
She couldn't imagine how she could help him, but she'd do her best. "Of course, Gray," she assured him. "You know you're always welcome. The coffeepot's full, and I'll fix cocoa for Tinker."
"Good. I'll stop by a bakery and get doughnuts." His voice softened. "I knew I could count on you."
He hung up before she could answer.
By the time she'd straightened the apartment and changed into a newer pair of jeans, Gray and Tinker were ringing her bell. She opened the door, and the aroma of freshly made doughnuts preceded them into the room.
"Oooh, they smell so good," she moaned, and rubbed her stomach. Tinker giggled.
Gray grinned and handed her the box. "I think they're still warm, so have at 'em. I'll pour the coffee."
Eve took the container and arranged its contents on a tray, which she carried into the living room and set on the coffee table. "Well, this is a treat. It isn't every day that I have guests for breakfast who bring their own food."
Gray walked in behind her with the coffee and cocoa and mugs on another tray, which he set on the floor; her coffee table wasn't big enough to hold two large trays. The three of them got down on the floor beside it and sat cross-legged, while he poured the beverages into mugs and handed them out.
Eve noticed that he'd maneuvered to get the table between him and her, and Tinker sat next to her. . "Help yourselves to the doughnuts," he said, and reached for a puffy sugar one, which he placed on a paper napkin. Tinker chose a pink-frosted cake type, and Eve took the one with chocolate frosting and nuts.
For a few minutes they just concentrated on eating. Eve loved sitting on the floor. It was so informal and relaxing. It felt to her as if they were a real family gathered for snack time.
When Gray finished his doughnut, he wiped his hands with a clean napkin and looked at Eve. "I noticed you have a TV set in your bedroom. Do you mind if Tinker watches it while we talk?"
Eve swallowed. "Not at all."
"Aw, Daddy," Tinker protested. "Why can't I stay here with you guys? I won't tell Mom what you talk about."
Gray looked as startled as Eve felt. "When have I ever asked you not to tell your mother anything I've done or said?" he asked.
Tinker lowered her head. "Well, never, I guess. But she's always asking me what's going on at your house, who comes over and what you do and say. I…I don't always tell her—"
Her voice broke, and Eve couldn't resist the urge to put her arms around the child and pull her close. She could see that Gray was too incensed with Bambi to deal with the situation yet, and he had a right to be. It was wrong of Bambi to put their little girl in the middle of their problems.
"It's okay, Tinker," Eve murmured as she cradled Gray's daughter to her. "I don't even know what he wants to talk to me about, but he probably thinks it's something that would be boring for you. You'd be more apt to enjoy some of the Saturday morning television shows."
Tinker sniffled. "But now he's mad at me."
"I'm not mad at you, sweetheart," Gray assured her as he lifted the coffee table and put it down on the other side of him. He moved over and sat close to Eve and Tinker.
"Your mother has probably told you I want you to live with me all the time," he continued, "but I'm having trouble arranging for someone to come to the house so early in the morning and be with you until I get home from the station. That's what I want to talk to Eve about. Maybe she knows other teachers who don't teach in the summertime, need the extra money and don't mind the odd hours."
Eve's eyes widened. So he hadn't found a baby-sitter yet, and his cousin was probably leaving to join other members of her family. What would he do if he couldn't find anyone? Would he have to give in and let Bambi have Tinker part-time again, after all?
"I can't think of anyone right offhand," she said to Gray, "but I know a lot of teachers. I'd be happy to get on the phone and talk to the ones I think might be interested."
He ran his fingers through his hair. "I hate to bother you with my troubles, but I'm at my wits' end. I've run out of time. I've contacted everyone I know, but the hours are so impossible, and I need someone starting Monday—"
"Daddy, why can't Eve take care of me?" Tinker piped up. "She doesn't teach school in the summer, and she comes to our house every afternoon to tutor me, anyway. She could just stay with us all the time."
Out of the mouths of babes, Eve thought as she fought back the rising tide of both elation and foreboding that threatened to consume her. That would be a really explosive situation. She wondered which of them would climb into the other's bed first.
Gray's face was as flushed as she knew hers was, and neither of them could meet the other's gaze.
Gray finally found his voice. "Honey, that's just not possible. Eve has her own home to take care of—"
"Then she could go home when you get off work and come back again at bedtime like cousin Leona did," Tinker persisted.
"We can't impose on Eve—" he began.
"What does impose mean?" Tinker interrupted.
By this time Eve's mind was whirling. Desperate needs took desperate measures, and Gray's need was desperate. Eve wasn't going to let him lose his bid for full custody of his daughter just because she was a virgin. Big deal! You'd think that qualified her for sainthood, when all it meant was that she'd never met a man who she wanted to be her first lover.
That is, not until Gray came along.
Now his innate sense of honor and decency might cost him his child. No way was she going to allow that.
Father and daughter were still bickering, but Eve had lost track of the conversation, so she cut in. "Gray," she said, but he apparently didn't hear her, so she touched his bent knee. That got his attention.
"Gray, I don't think you should be so quick to discount Tinker's suggestion."
He looked at her as if she were spouting gibberish. "What are you talking about? You know why it's out of the question."
"I know there's no other choice," she reminded him.
She stopped and looked at Tinker, who was still sitting on the floor beside her, all ears. "Tinker, I'd really like to talk to your dad alone for a few minutes. Would you mind dreadfully?"
Tinker smiled. "Are you going to talk him into letting you baby-sit me?"
Eve chuckled. "I'll try my best, but in order to work my magic, I have to be alone with him. My bedroom's down
that short hallway—" she pointed in the right direction "—you know how to operate the TV."
Tinker giggled. "Okay," she said, then stood up and scampered off.
Gray glared at Eve. "And just what magic is that? Are you planning to cast some kind of spell over me?"
"Do you think I could?" she asked softly.
"I know damn well you could," he admitted. "And so do you, so let's cut the nonsense and get right to the point. Do you actually want to baby-sit Tinker?"
"I'd be happy to," she said. "We get along well together, and it would make tutoring her much easier. I can do it in snatches all day instead of trying to cram it all into a couple of hours."
"But you're deliberately sidestepping the crucial point, and you know it," he said grumpily. "In the first place, I don't have an extra bedroom. I use the third one as an office."
"No problem," she countered. "Tinker has a set of twin beds in her room. I don't think she'd mind sharing the second one with me. If she does, I can sleep on the sofa in the office."
"Like hell you can," he roared. "It's too uncomfortable. Besides, I can't have you sleeping in my house and in the room next to mine. I'd never get any rest. Have you any idea how tormenting it is for a man to want a woman as much as I want you, and know he can't have her?"
Her gaze meshed with his. "Have I ever resisted you when you came on to me?" Her tone was low and loving.
He reached out and cradled her to him. "No, you haven't," he groaned. "And that's why I can't agree to your baby-sitting Tinker."
He held her gently, but she could feel his heartbeat speed up when she put her hand on his chest. "If you'd fend me off, tell me I'm too old, or too far behind the times to appeal to you, I could leave you alone. I'd never pester you with my attentions. But you're so sweet and willing. It drives me crazy to know you want me, too. I'm supposed to be the mature, responsible one in this duo, but I'd never withstand the temptation of knowing you were sleeping in the room right next to me."
She wound her arms around his neck and rubbed her cheek against his. "Then you know how I feel. It's just as hard for me. It would be so easy for us to seduce each other, so why don't we? After all, we're two consenting adults."
He stroked her breast, and she shivered with delight. "Yes," he agreed, "but I've been an adult a whole lot longer than you. I'm the one who's supposed to be keeping my cool. Besides, in the long run it wouldn't do any good. Since we're not married, we couldn't sleep together in my house as long as Tinker is there. I won't set that kind of an example for her."
Eve winced. She felt as if she'd been slapped, although she knew he hadn't meant it that way. No wonder he thought of her as a child. She was acting like one, greedily reaching out for what she wanted, with no thought of what it might mean to others.
Gray was determined to set a good precedent for his impressionable daughter, and all she, Eve, cared about was her own selfish desires.
She pulled out of his embrace and scooted a few inches away. "You're right, of course," she said somewhat testily, "and I promise you, I won't let that happen."
He looked puzzled by her change of tone and attitude and started to speak. "Eve…?"
She stood and looked down at him. He seemed less intimidating that way. "However, you still need a babysitter, and I'm still available, so why don't we try this arrangement for a while? I'll spend the nights at your house and stay there with Tinker until you get home in the early afternoon. Then I'll leave and come back at bedtime to start the routine over again. On weekends, of course, I'll stay here in my own home."
He frowned and stood up, too, but she hurried on before he could say anything. "During this time you'll still be searching for a housekeeper, or whatever it is you have in mind. So I won't have to be there too long—"
"Eve!" He didn't raise his voice, but his tone was commanding. "What's the matter? Did I say something wrong? If I did, I didn't mean to."
Her resentment drained away. She couldn't take out her disgust with her own behavior on him. He had enough problems without her adding to them.
"No, Gray," she assured him. "You didn't say anything wrong. You're always a gentleman. I'm the one who needs reprimanding now and then."
She saw the puzzlement in his expression and quickly changed the subject. "Why don't you take the rest of the day to think this over, and let me know tomorrow what you decide? I'll understand either way."
He reached for her and took her in his arms again. "I don't need time to think it over," he said huskily as he rubbed his cheek in her hair. "I want you with me, and we'll take it one day at a time."
Eve packed a weekender case on Sunday evening with the few personal items and clothing she'd need for her stay at Gray's house. She moved into Tinker's room, and Tinker was delighted; the extra twin bed was a little confining, but comfortable.
The first few days were both exciting and awkward. Exciting, because Eve could now tutor Tinker during the morning hours when the child was well rested and receptive. Awkward, because Eve knew Gray usually went to bed early; his early morning work schedule was so demanding. She made it a point to arrive at his house shortly after the dinner hour, but he seemed to feel that he had to entertain her.
Instead of retiring for the night, he stayed up with her to talk, read or watch television after Tinker was put to bed. Eve enjoyed it immensely, but on Wednesday, when she caught him nodding off in his lounge chair, she knew he really needed his sleep.
She walked over to wake him, putting her hand on his shoulder and shaking him gently. "Gray, go to bed."
He looked up at her with sleep-filled eyes, then grinned and pulled her down onto his lap. "Yes, Mama," he murmured, and cuddled her close.
She knew that she shouldn't allow this. They were playing with fire, but it felt so good. With Tinker in the house, there was no chance of it getting out of control. Gray wouldn't allow that. It was so nice, though, to curl up with him, lie back and let the enchantment between them flow.
She put her head on his shoulder, and he tenderly massaged her hip and outer thigh until, with a contented sigh, he fell back to sleep. She sat there for a while, continuing to revel in the gratification of loving him and the fantasy that he loved her, too.
She also nodded off, and when she surfaced again, the clock on the mantel told her it was almost midnight. Time for them both to be in bed. She tried to sit up, but his arms tightened around her and held her to him.
That would have been fine with her, but she knew he couldn't rest well with her sprawled all over him. The chair was comfortable enough for one person to sleep in, but not two. If she could just release herself, she could get up and cover him with a blanket before going to her bed in Tinker's room.
She breathed deeply and tried again, and once more his arms tightened around her. "No," he murmured sleepily.
She knew that he wasn't awake enough to know what was going on—only that he liked it the way it was.
Finally she raised her head and whispered in his ear. "Don't wake up, my darling. I'm only going to my bed."
She teased his earlobe with her tongue, then sucked it lightly. "Good night, sweetheart."
Without warning he moved his hands enough to cup her head on either side. "I love you so much," he murmured thickly as he brought her face down to his and gave her a kiss—one that was tender and filled with longing.
It lasted only a moment before his arms dropped to his sides and he was once more asleep.
For the last two days of that workweek, Eve wandered around in a daze. Gray hadn't mentioned the incident, and neither had she. Did he remember what had happened? There was no doubt that he was asleep both before and after, but how conscious was he during it?
Why would he say he loved her unless it was true?
He'd told her that he was never going to fall in love again after his disastrous marriage to Bambi. Knowing Gray, she was sure he meant it. On the other hand, people seldom had complete control over their passions. Could he have been expressing a deepl
y buried emotion that he didn't dare examine when he was fully awake?
Eve's free weekend started when Gray arrived home on Friday afternoon, and continued until Sunday evening— and she was happy to see this one come. It gave her a release from the tension she was always under when she was with Gray. Part of her hoped he'd find a housekeeper as soon as possible; the rest of her dreaded the moment when she'd no longer have even that tenuous connection to him.
On Saturday, she decided to give her tiny apartment a thorough spring housecleaning. While she was sorting through the drawers of her desk, she found a brochure from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, telling of their new program to provide teachers with the classes necessary to qualify them to teach children with learning difficulties.
This subject had been her interest all along, but the University of South Dakota, where she'd received her BA, hadn't offered the extra training. She remembered now finding the brochure from Lincoln in the mail a few weeks ago. She'd put it in a drawer in the desk, intending to get back to it when she had a few minutes to spare. But then Gray and Tinker had charged into her life, and she'd forgotten all about it.
She stuffed the envelope back into the drawer, but made a mental note to remember what it was and where she'd filed it. It might give her an out someday—if she needed one.
That weekend Gray wandered around lost and lonely. He'd known that he'd miss Eve on the days she wasn't with him, but he hadn't had the faintest idea how much. They'd agreed to stay apart on Saturdays and Sundays when Gray was at home to take care of Tinker, and he'd tried to fill in the empty hours with things he and his daughter could do together—but to no avail.
Tinker missed her, too, and couldn't understand why Eve couldn't be included in their weekend activities. Gray made excuses, but they were weak and unconvincing.
As if that weren't enough, he was plagued by the dream he'd had the night he fell asleep in his chair. He wasn't prone to having erotic dreams, and this one wasn't actually erotic. It was sweet and tender and filled with unbearable longing.
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