Found: One Baby

by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  “Why wouldn’t he be?” Thad said.

  Michelle sipped her beer. Still holding his gaze, she shrugged. “Because he’s not here with you.”

  “He’s still at the sitter’s.”

  “Oh.”

  Something dark and disapproving glimmered in her green eyes.

  Thad scowled, making no effort to hide the fact that he was disappointed—in the way the evening had gone, in her… “I couldn’t pick him up at eight. I didn’t know when I would be done at the hospital, so I talked to Dotty and we decided it would be better for all concerned if William spent the night at her home. I’ll go get him first thing tomorrow morning, since I’m off tomorrow.”

  “Oh,” Michelle said again, but this time her expression was one of relief.

  Obviously, Thad realized, she had jumped to the conclusion that something dire had happened to William.

  Sighing, he carried his beer into the living room. She followed him and watched as he sat down on the center cushion of the sofa and worked off his boots. Slouching down until his shoulders were lined up with the back of the sofa, he stretched his legs out in front of him.

  Days and nights like this had him wishing he had someone to come home to, someone to unwind with.

  Because both club chairs were filled with neat stacks of baby gifts Thad still couldn’t figure out where to store, she took the only available other seat, one in the corner of the sofa next to him.

  “Must have been some night at the E.R.,” she murmured sympathetically.

  “Not the kind I ever want to have again, believe me,” Thad responded.

  “What happened?”

  He looked at the way her knee was bent between them. He wished he could go back and erase the whole day for all concerned.

  “There was a head-on collision on the highway outside of town. A drunk driver hit a family of six.” And that wasn’t the worst of it, not by a long shot. “None of them were wearing seat belts.”

  “Oh, God.”

  “Both parents and the drunk driver were killed instantly. The children, ranging from one to eight, were all seriously injured.”

  Her eyes instantly filled with tears, and her compassion reached out somehow to envelop him in a way that words could not. She covered his hand with hers and asked softly, “Are the kids going to make it?”

  “I don’t know.” Thad accepted the comfort of her hand even as he took another long pull on his beer. “We airlifted them to Children’s Hospital as soon as we got them stable, but it’s not looking good for any of them.”

  Michelle turned ashen. She tightened her fingers on his and edged closer to him. “I’m so sorry,” she choked out.

  Thad ran a hand over his face. “If they do make it, at least they’ve got family in Houston, already on their way to the hospital.” Which wasn’t, Thad knew, always the case.

  Michelle continued staring at Thad. She shook her head, seemingly at a loss as to what to say or do to make things better.

  Experience had taught Thad there was no way to do that. “I shouldn’t have laid all this on you,” he said gruffly. He shook his head, turned away.

  “I don’t know how you stand it,” she blurted. “It breaks my heart when I see a kid that’s hurt or sick.”

  Mine, too, Thad thought.

  “You must be exhausted,” Michelle said finally.

  He was. “That doesn’t mean I’ll sleep. Too much adrenaline.”

  Michelle paused, then asked, “How do you usually work it out of your system?”

  Thad knew how he wanted to work it off—tonight. He looked at her and said nothing.

  She blushed. “Oh.”

  “Which is why,” he told her candidly, wishing he could just haul her into his arms and kiss her, “maybe, you should head on home.”

  YES, SHE SHOULD, Michelle knew, as they both stood. If she stayed, she would end up in Thad’s arms again.

  But maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing. Just for this one night. Maybe if they made love once, she would be able to get him out of her system. Stop obsessing over his comings and goings, stop thinking of him day and night. Maybe, if they explored the attraction between them, she would be able to walk away. And so could he. Maybe. She hoped so.

  “I’m up for it,” she said quietly.

  He stared at her, as if not sure he’d heard her correctly. “Up for what?”

  “You.” Her heart racing, Michelle stepped closer. “Me.” She wrapped one arm around his neck, threaded the other hand through the hair on the nape of his neck. “This.”

  Their lips met halfway in a searing connection of heat and need. Wonder swept through Michelle, along with the knowledge that chemistry like this was something to be savored. So what if this pleasure was going to be meaningless and short-lived, she thought, as he swept a hand down her spine, urging her closer. Her breasts were crushed against the hardness of his chest. Lower still, she felt the depth of his need for her.

  Thad kissed her like a man who’d been as starved for intimacy as she. He held her as if he never wanted to let her go. And the truth was, she didn’t want their passion to end, either. Not without seeing where it led.

  Sifting his hands through her hair, he kissed her temple, her cheek, the corner of her mouth. “I want to take you to bed,” he said softly.

  Feelings ran riot inside her. “Just this one time,” she whispered against the encroaching pressure of his mouth.

  His eyes darkened with an emotion she couldn’t identify, then he was taking her by the hand, leading her up the stairs. They paused on the landing, to kiss, and then again, as they made their way down the hall. When at last they ended up in his bedroom, he slowly untied and unbuttoned her coat, kissing her slowly all the while. She trembled as he took it off. He paused, then moved to turn on the bedside lamp.

  She wanted to hurry; Thad wanted to take his time. Kissing her, even as he unbuttoned her pajama top, one button at a time. By the time the fabric fell open, her breasts were aching for his touch. He eased the fabric down her arms, baring her to the waist.

  “Incredible,” he murmured, rubbing his thumbs across the dusky crowns. He cupped the weight in his palms. “So incredibly beautiful,” he whispered.

  Through his eyes, she felt beautiful. Sensual. Ready and eager to please. And she wasn’t alone.

  He guided her backward, toward the bed, bracing her against his arm. Ever so slowly, he lowered her till she was stretched out on her back, then he kissed his way from her lips, to the nape of her neck, the V of her collarbone, the valley between her breasts. She trembled, her arms clinging to his shoulders and neck. She watched, as if in a languid dream, while his free hand explored every curve and hollow of her breasts. Her skin heated. She had never felt this way before. “Thad…” she gasped.

  “I know,” he murmured. “I’m getting there.”

  Claiming her lips again, he eased his hand beneath the waistband of her pajama pants. Tenderly caressed her stomach, moved lower…And still he kissed her, over and over, as if this chance would never come again. He knew exactly how to touch and engulf her in pleasure. How not to rush. Silken brushes of his fingertips alternated with soothing strokes of his palm. Almost before she knew it, she was freefalling over the edge. His breath rough against her cheek, he held her until the quaking stopped, then finished undressing her and joined her—naked—between the sheets.

  Lost in a world of undeniable pleasure, inundated with the touch, smell and taste of him, Michelle surrendered to the desire flowing through her. Indulging in her most secret fantasy, she took her time exploring his body, too. His skin was warm satin, his muscles hard. Lower still, she found him hot, hard, demanding. Patient enough to wait until she had stroked and loved every inch of him, too, until there was no more holding back. Finally, he was parting her thighs and positioning himself between them.

  She trembled as he slid his hands beneath her and lifted her to him. They kissed lingeringly, and then she arched to receive him. The merging of their bodies w
as as electric as the joining of their lips, the need to explore supplanted by the yearning for satisfaction. Together they reached new heights—until there was nothing but the two of them, this wild yearning, this incredible passion…this sweet moment in time.

  THAD HELD MICHELLE close. They’d barely finished, and already he wanted her again. Not just physically, but emotionally, too. And that was definitely worth noting. He wasn’t used to being this attached to anyone this soon. Aside from the feelings he had for William—feelings of connection and closeness that had seemed to be there from the very first—he’d never felt as close to anyone as he felt to Michelle in this moment.

  And that was something, given they’d barely known each other a week.

  He kissed the top of her head, drinking in the orange-blossom fragrance of her hair and skin. Face pressed against his chest, she snuggled against him. “I can’t believe we just did that,” she murmured.

  Thad threaded his hands through her hair, tilted her face up to his. “I can.” He looked into the emerald depths of her eyes. “I’ve been wanting to make love to you since the first time we kissed.” He grinned, amending with rueful honesty, “Actually, sooner than that.”

  Excitement mixed with satisfaction in her husky tone. “When?”

  Thad stroked his fingers through her hair. “Even when you wouldn’t even give me the time of day.” He kissed the smooth curve of her shoulder, the nape of her neck, her high sculpted cheek. “When did you realize you wanted me?”

  She kissed his shoulder, the V of his collarbone, the place above his heart. “I don’t know.”

  He wasn’t buying the evasion for one second. “Yes, you do,” he insisted playfully, stroking a hand down her spine.

  She quivered at his touch. Against his bare chest, he could feel her nipples beading. “The first time I saw you mowing the yard.”

  Aware he was getting hard all over again, he lifted a brow.

  She shifted, and he felt the softness of her thighs against the hardness of his. “What can I say?” She shrugged, offhand. “I liked the way you looked pushing a mower.”

  He laughed. “You’re serious.”

  “Oh, yeah.” She smiled dreamily. “You’re one attractive guy.” She patted the center of his chest with the flat of her hand. “But then you know that.” She started to get up.

  He caught her wrist and drew her back down beside him. “Not as attractive as you.”

  She flushed. “I wouldn’t bet on that.” Her gaze sobered. “Which is why we really need to pull back and think about this.”

  He rolled onto his side, propping up his head on his palm, draping his thigh over hers.

  With her tousled reddish-blond hair, she looked like an angel. “There are times for thinking—” he traced her lower lip with the pad of his thumb “—and times for not.” This was, he decided, the latter. He bent to kiss her.

  “You’re making it very hard to argue,” she whispered as their kiss deepened.

  Feeling her tremble acquiescently, he kissed his way lazily down her body. “That’s because I don’t want you to argue,” he said.

  She sighed as he found her center. “One more time then,” she assented, closing her eyes and giving herself over to him. “One…last…time…”

  HOURS LATER, Michelle awoke, to find herself cozily ensconced in Thad’s strong arms, her head nestled against his chest, her legs draped over one of his. Daylight was filtering in through the closed draperies. She heard a car start up and rumble down the street. With effort, she forced herself to open her eyes. Seven o’clock!

  She yawned, extricated herself from the warmth of his limbs and sat up. She shoved the hair from her eyes. “What time were you supposed to pick up William?”

  “Seven-thirty.” He glanced at the clock and sat up, too.

  Michelle rubbed her eyes. “I guess we fell asleep,” she said. After the fourth time. Prior to that, they couldn’t get enough of each other. Every time she’d even thought about leaving, he’d reached for her. And once she was in his arms, it had been so easy to succumb. To tell herself pleasure was fleeting and she’d had so little of it in her life lately, she deserved at least one night of all-out passion.

  Now, in the light of day, she wasn’t so certain it had been a good idea. Instead of satisfying her curiosity and getting Thad out of her system, she had only drawn him deeper into her. That couldn’t be good for someone trying to maintain a professional distance. And she was trying hard not to get involved with Thad while his petition for adoption was being considered by the court…

  Thad kissed the back of her hand and rose. “Want to come with me to pick William up?”

  Michelle looked at him in surprise. “Wouldn’t that look…”

  “Like we were involved on some level? Yeah. Probably.”

  Thad did not care.

  Michelle did.

  She didn’t want to give anyone, least of all herself or Thad, the wrong impression. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  Feeling suddenly shy about her nakedness, she clasped the sheet to her breast. Then she looked at her raincoat and pajamas still scattered on his bedroom floor. She bit down on an oath. “I can’t cross the street in that.”

  He grinned. “Guess you’ll have to stay here all day, then.”

  “Seriously.” Michelle dreaded the thought of encountering one of the neighbors wearing only satin pajamas and a raincoat!

  “You want me to go over to your place and bring something back for you to wear?”

  “That’d probably be worse if someone saw you going in and out.”

  She couldn’t believe it. She was thirty-two years old and about to do the walk of shame.

  Thad opened up his closet, rummaged around, emerged with a pair of stretchy, black running shorts and a gray T-shirt. “Put these on, and wear your coat over them, and it’ll look like you’ve been out jogging.”

  “In someone else’s clothes.” Michelle ran her hands through her hair. “This is ridiculous.”

  “My offer to go over to your place still stands.”

  They heard another car start nearby and drive down the street.

  “No.” Michelle sighed. “The longer we wait, the more likelihood there is I’ll run into one of the neighbors. I’m just going to put on the pajamas and my coat and go home.”

  “You can always carry a cup of sugar with you. Now that I actually have some in my pantry, you can pretend you came over to borrow some.”

  “Very funny, doc.”

  Still not taking this dilemma as seriously as he should, Thad smirked and disappeared into the bathroom.

  Michelle used his absence to get out of bed and slip on her pajamas. She ran her fingers through her hair and put on her clogs. She was in the process of picking up her coat from the floor when the doorbell rang.

  Michelle turned to Thad, who had just walked out of the bathroom, in the same clothes he’d worn to work the evening before. Morning beard rimmed his jaw. He smelled like mint toothpaste. “Expecting anyone?” she asked, feeling trapped.

  Thad shook his head. “Stay here. I’ll go see who it is.”

  Michelle perched on the edge of the bed while he walked downstairs. The doorbell rang again, more insistently this time. When Thad opened the door she cringed when she heard the familiar voice…

  THAD STARED at the social worker standing on his doorstep, aware her timing could not have been worse. “I’m here for a second inspection of the premises,” Tamara Kelly said briskly.

  Not sure what would happen if Michelle were to come downstairs, clad in her pajamas and looking as if she’d just spent the night with him, which of course she had, Thad tried a diversionary tactic instead. “William’s not here.”

  Tamara lifted the glasses on the chain around her neck and peered at him through the lenses. “Where is he?”

  “At the sitter’s.”

  “Already?” Tamara glanced at her watch, noting it was seven-twenty.

  “He spent the night
there. I didn’t get out of the E.R. and home until almost one-thirty.”

  She nodded cryptically.

  “I was on my way to pick him up,” Thad continued. “So if you’d like to accompany me, you could check out the place where he stays while I’m at work. I think you may already know his sitter—Dotty Pederson. She used to work in the nursery at the hospital.”

  “I do. And I probably will pay her a visit at some point, but right now I need to have a look around here.”

  For the first time Thad lamented the lack of a back stair-case in his home. “I probably should go upstairs and tidy up first,” he said.

  “Actually you shouldn’t.” Tamara brushed by him, on a mission now. “It’s important I see things just as they are.”

  If it had only been a messy bedroom, Thad wouldn’t have cared. But there was no way around the fact that Michelle was up there.

  Or not, he thought, as Michelle appeared at the top of the stairs, her jacket buttoned and belted over her white satin pajamas.

  “Hello, Tamara,” Michelle said pleasantly, descending the stairs as if her presence was nothing out of the ordinary.

  Tamara’s eyebrows shot skyward.

  Whatever she was thinking was definitely not good, Thad noted.

  “Counselor. I’m surprised to see you here so early this morning.”

  “It is early, isn’t it?” Michelle smiled and continued coming down the stairs.

  Tamara turned to Thad, with disapproval. “Tell me this isn’t what it looks like—that you didn’t dump the baby at the sitter’s so you could…entertain a guest overnight.”

  Chapter Eight

  Michelle knew that making love with Thad—even for one night—would lead to trouble. She just hadn’t figured it would be this kind of trouble. She took a deep breath. “This wasn’t planned,” she explained.

  “But I’m not sorry it happened,” Thad cut in.

  Tamara frowned. “Then you acknowledge that the two of you are now…?”

  “Involved,” Thad confirmed. “And I’m not ashamed of that.”