The Boy Who Made Them Love Again

by Scarlet Wilson

  Abby woke at seven a.m. The sun was streaming through the curtains, showing the start of a beautiful sun-kissed day. She stretched in her comfortable bed. Then she realised something was wrong. The house was silent. Her house was never silent at this time in the morning. But, then, she never slept this late, and she never woke up alone. Reuben always woke up in the middle of the night and she brought him into bed beside her.

  She sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. She couldn’t even remember how she had got to bed. The last thing she remembered she’d been lying on the rug in the living room with Luke. The memories made her blush.

  Abby threw back the cover, pushed her feet into her slippers and grabbed her dressing gown from the foot of the bed. As soon as she pushed open her bedroom door she could hear voices. Happy voices. No, Reuben’s voice was happy—Luke’s voice was a little strained. She wandered along the corridor towards them.

  Luke was lying in the guest bedroom, propped up on some pillows. Somehow he’d resisted coming into bed alongside her. He must have known she wouldn’t have wanted Reuben to see them in bed together. His duvet had been transformed into an assault course for a variety of soldiers and cars. Ornaments, toothbrushes and aerosol cans littered the cover and Reuben was having the time of his life. Crash! Bang!

  ‘Give me the red one, Luke, it’s the super-charged one. You take the blue one—it can fly. Now, ready, set, go!’

  Abby stood in the doorway. They hadn’t even noticed her yet. She could feel the butterflies in her stomach. This was the man that didn’t want children. Ever.

  Hell, he hadn’t even liked coming up to the paediatric ward to pick her up and on the few occasions that he had appeared, he hadn’t been able to get out of the place quickly enough.

  Then something else struck her. She’d never seen Reuben do this before. He’d never had a male adult role model in his life. Most of his adult contacts were with Abby or Lucy. She watched him as he leapt onto Luke’s back and tried to tumble him to the floor.

  She frowned. It was much more rough and tumble behaviour than he did with her. Was this what a little boy needed? And he wasn’t getting it from her?

  For the first time ever she felt strangely lacking. Maybe Reuben needed more than her?

  ‘Abby, hi.’ Luke’s voice cut through her thoughts. His eyes were heavy from lack of sleep and an uncomfortable smile was on his face. ‘Reuben woke me early this morning. He decided we would be playmates.’

  Luke shifted underneath the cover, causing numerous items to move around the bed.

  ‘Wow, Luke, now we’ve got a mountain!’ shouted Reuben as he pounced on Luke’s bent knee.

  Luke lifted his eyebrows at Abby. ‘Does he wake this early every day?’

  Abby nodded solemnly.

  Luke swallowed thoughtfully. Long, comfortable lie-ins were obviously a thing from the past in this household. The kind of thing he used to do with Abby on a morning like this. Long, lazy days usually spent wrapped in each other’s arms with no one else to think about. If only. He caught the expression on her face. He could tell she was uncomfortable, but why?

  It was time to get her mind on other things. ‘This morning we have the car and soldier extraordinaire assault course. Would you care to have a try?’ He lifted the corner of the duvet cover and gave her a wink. Abby he could deal with. Abby he was comfortable with.

  She watched, an uneasy feeling spreading over her. Her child. Reuben was hers. And he had been right from the start. Hers alone. She didn’t have to share him. What’s more, she didn’t want to share him.

  ‘Are you coming in, Mommy?’

  She shook her head. ‘No, honey. Let’s go downstairs and make breakfast.’

  In one leap, Reuben flew across the room and flung himself into her arms. ‘Great, I’m starving.’ The warmth of his little body spread that familiar feeling throughout her body. The feeling that gave her reassurance of her place and role in his life. She was his mother. No one could take that away from her. ‘What are we having, Mommy?’

  ‘What do you want?’

  ‘Porridge! Porridge is my favouwite!’

  Abby gave him a kiss on the cheek and set him down on the floor. ‘Then porridge it is.’ She turned her head towards Luke. ‘And Dr Luke will get dressed before he comes downstairs,’ she said determinedly. The thought of Luke parading around her kitchen in his thin theatre scrubs conjured up butterflies in her stomach that she didn’t need.

  Abby started as the phone rang as she walked by the hall table. She picked it up quickly and listened to the voice at the other end. Luke was wandering down the stairs towards her, some decidedly rumpled clothes in place and his hair standing on end.

  ‘Yes, yes. No, I understand.’ She winked at Luke as he appeared behind her. ‘Oh, don’t worry, I’m sure I can find someone to do that. No problem, see you later.’

  ‘Who was that?’

  ‘David Fairgreaves.’

  ‘What? Is something wrong with Jennifer Taylor?’

  She shook her head. ‘No, Jennifer Taylor is doing fine. No signs of going into labour as yet. Valerie Carter, however, has just decided to go into an early labour.’

  Luke’s brow furrowed. ‘Who’s Valerie Carter?’

  ‘Do you remember that yesterday I told you our cardiologist was 38 weeks pregnant, with a full clinic?’

  He nodded. ‘So that’s Valerie Carter.’ The realisation of her words had just struck him. ‘So what have you just volunteered me for?’

  ‘Just to cover her clinics and procedures tomorrow.’ She gave a little smile over her shoulder as she walked towards the kitchen. ‘Let’s face it, you don’t have anything else to do for the next few days.’

  Luke gave her a lazy smile. ‘True. It’s not like I can do anything for Jennifer Taylor. I might as well make myself useful. But I thought you said you only had a few deliveries a year?’ He followed her into the kitchen and as she washed her hands at the sink, he stepped up behind her, sliding his arms around her waist and pressing the full length of his body against hers. She leaned backwards into him, and his head dropped to the exposed skin at the nape of her neck as he started to run some butterfly-like kisses up to the back of her ear.

  ‘It’s true, but what’s that old saying, “When it rains, it pours”?’

  He could hear her breath catching in her throat, knowing the effect he was having on her. ‘So I’m going to spend the next few days surrounded by babies, then?’ His voice was low and husky and there was a certain something awakening behind her as he pressed closer.

  Abby let out a little groan as she answered, leaning her head further back and exposing even more of the white skin on her neck. ‘Looks like it. Time to get used to it, Luke. Pelican Cove is a small place, you can’t just hide away because you don’t like kids.’ Her voice was loaded, her tone almost accusing.

  ‘You don’t like kids, Dr Luke?’ Reuben’s voice was like a bolt out of the blue, causing them to spring apart.

  He pulled his T-shirt lower to cover the swell in his trousers. Damn! He’d forgotten all about Reuben. All he’d thought about was Abby and what he wanted to do to her. The intrusion irked him. He wasn’t used to this. He wasn’t used to being mindful of small eyes and ears. He was used to walking across his apartment wearing nothing but his birthday suit. And previously, when he’d been with Abby, they’d managed to christen every room in the apartment they’d shared. How could you do that with a child about? It was bad enough to be woken early every day, without any extracurricular activities being interrupted as well.

  Reuben’s voice was full of astonishment. ‘Why don’t you like kids?’

  Luke shifted uncomfortably as a tinge of red appeared on his cheeks. ‘Who said I don’t like kids?’

  ‘My mom did.’ His eyes were large and his expression solemn. ‘And she knows everything. Don’t you like me?’ There was something in the way he said it, like a four-year-old who implicitly trusted his own little world, that tugged at Luke’s heartstrings. He want
ed the floor to open up and swallow him. For a second, he’d almost wished the little guy away. He was the adult here, and he was a guest in their home. It was up to him to make an effort. Reuben was part of Abby’s life, and whether he liked it or not he was going to have to get used to the idea.

  A picture flitted through his mind. A picture of another little boy on a day out at the beach—wide-eyed, expressive and trusting—just before his wretch of a big brother had dunked him in a rock pool.

  He could feel Abby’s eyes staring at him, burrowing into the side of his face. He bent downwards and whispered in Reuben’s ear, ‘Of course I like you, Reuben. You look just like another little boy that I used to play with. And I liked him—a lot.’

  Reuben’s eyes narrowed, before he nodded acceptingly and trotted off to play.

  Luke breathed a sigh of relief and sagged back against the wall. This was tougher than he’d thought.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  ABBY headed out to the front step, shaking some crumbs from the breakfast tablecloth. Luke couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen someone use a fabric tablecloth—it must be one of the things her aunt had left.

  ‘So what are we going to do today?’ There was a twinkle in his eye. He could think of lots of things he’d like to do with Abby today.

  ‘We—’ she emphasized the word strongly as she looked pointedly at Reuben ‘—were going to do a little shopping, then head down to the beach.’

  Luke glanced downwards at his rumpled clothes—a fine cotton shirt and dress trousers—not exactly made for the beach. He grimaced as he thought of the contents of his suitcase—more shirts, suits and ties. Clothes designed to wear at a professional conference to impress. No casual clothes at all. Certainly nothing suitable for a beach.

  He turned his head towards the ocean view outside. The early sunrise sent shimmers of pink and orange glistening across the cove waters. It was going to be a gorgeous day.

  ‘Think you can manage to spend the day with a family, bachelor boy?’ It was a loaded question and Abby didn’t wait for his response but turned on her heel and headed back into the kitchen.

  Luke watched her retreating back, in her figure-hugging shorts and skimpy T-shirt. He could only imagine what she’d look like in a bikini. It was a sight he didn’t want to miss. ‘You bet,’ he murmured as he followed her indoors.

  An hour later they were in one of the local stores. Abby flicked through the rails. ‘Nope, nope, no, no …’ She gave him a cursory glance as the clothes hangers practically skidded along the rails. ‘Ahh, this one.’ She held up a purple T-shirt and tossed it in his direction with a nod of approval, before moving over to the clothes stand with stacks of folded shorts.

  Luke shook his head in bewilderment at the mirror, as he held the T-shirt up in front of him. He gave a little smile. The colouring and style were perfect for him, he squinted at the label—yes, it was the right size, the woman hadn’t lost her touch.

  He heard a loud sigh at his feet. Reuben was sitting on the floor, bucket and spade in hand, looking extremely bored. ‘She does this with me too.’

  ‘Does what?’

  ‘Picks all my clothes.’ He shook his little blond head. ‘It’s best not to argue or we’ll be here for ever.’

  Luke let out a roar of laughter. Spoken like a man who knew which battles to fight. Reuben screwed up his nose as he stared at Luke’s purple T-shirt, ‘She usually picks good stuff. You should be okay.’

  ‘Okay for what?’ Abby appeared at their sides, clutching two pairs of knee-length shorts in her hands. She pointed towards the nearby changing room. ‘Go and make sure these fit,’ she said, thrusting the shorts in his direction.

  He raised his eyebrow at her. ‘What’s wrong, Abs, worried you’ve forgotten what size I am?’

  She rolled her eyes at his innuendo-laden question, before giving him a naughty smile of her own. ‘Heads up, little guy.’ She tapped Reuben on the shoulder. ‘I’ve decided that you can pick Luke’s swimwear.’

  She pointed towards a rail loaded with various styles of swimming shorts and trunks. Luke gulped. The neon bright colors were already hurting his eyes from a distance.

  ‘Cool,’ mumbled Reuben, before heading over towards the rail.

  ‘You don’t mind—do you, Luke?’

  He shook his head quickly before ducking inside the changing room. ‘Please, please, don’t let it be the tiny trunks,’ he muttered as he pushed his legs into the shorts Abby had picked for him. In less than thirty seconds he was done. Both sets of shorts were perfect for the beach, loose fitting and ending just above his knees.

  He stuck his head back out the changing room. ‘The shorts are fine, but do I only get one T-sh—’ He stopped. Abby had already picked out another two T-shirts for him. She stared down at his long legs. ‘The shorts are nice …’ she smiled ‘…but we really need to do something about those shoes.’

  Luke laughed and followed her gaze. Beach shorts and black leather Italian shoes really didn’t mix.

  ‘I’ve found you the best pair of swimmers ever, Luke!’ Reuben rushed over, holding the brightly coloured shorts in front of him. ‘Whaddya think?’

  Luke lifted them from his small hands. Just as he’d feared. Bright green neon ninja turtles. The little face was staring up at him, so pleased with the item that he’d found. Waiting for him to say something.

  Abby frowned as she reached over and fingered the swim shorts. ‘These look just like yours, Reuben.’

  ‘I know!’ he shouted. ‘We’ll be a match! Isn’t that cool?’

  Luke’s eyes drifted between Reuben and Abby. He couldn’t read the expression on her face. It was almost as if she wasn’t quite sure how to react, what to say. Not like Abby at all. But he could read the expression on Reuben’s face and he didn’t hesitate.

  ‘These look fabulous, Reuben. I love them.’

  ‘You do?’

  ‘Sure I do. Now give me two minutes so I can pay for all this stuff.’

  Luke pulled the labels off the T-shirt and shorts that he was wearing and handed them to the cashier, along with the other items.

  Two minutes later they left with his crumpled shirt and dress trousers stuffed into one of the plastic bags.

  Abby ran her eyes up and down the length of him. Something prickled under her gaze. Something thankfully hidden beneath baggy beach shorts. She knew him better than he knew himself.

  Another hour later they were on the beach, lying on their matching ninja turtle beach towels. Luke pulled off his newly purchased sneakers and exposed his hot feet to the cool air around them.

  ‘You didn’t have to do that.’

  ‘Do what?’

  She stuck the parasol into the sand and tilted it towards Reuben’s towel to shade him from the sun. ‘Buy all this stuff.’ She pointed to the items lying around them.

  Luke leaned towards her. ‘I’ll have you know that I’ve always wanted a ninja turtle towel. They just didn’t seem to have them anywhere in Washington.’ He lay back, raising his hands to shade his face from the sun. ‘I guess I just lucked out, coming here.’

  ‘I guess you did.’

  The words seemed to hang in the air between them, the meaning more than either one could say. Abby bit her bottom lip. Today was so different for her. Usually when she and Reuben came to the beach, they came alone. But Luke’s presence was everywhere, and it wasn’t just his muscular frame.

  She’d noticed a difference in Reuben, how he was acting. He kept giving sidelong glances at Luke, looking for his approval on what towel he wanted, what ice cream he picked, what path they chose to walk to the beach.

  And it was uncomfortable. She was used to being the centre of Reuben’s whole world—as he was hers—and something about this just didn’t feel right. She wasn’t used to him asking someone else’s opinion or considering someone else’s point of view. She made all the decisions for the two of them. It was her word that was law. Her hand that he held. Her permission that he sought.
r />   Abby gave herself a shake. This was silly. Luke was only here for a few days. He was a novelty to Reuben, a novelty that would soon wear off when Reuben realised that Luke wasn’t really interested in him.

  Her eyes drifted over to the water’s edge. Reuben had met some other kids and was busy making mud pies—his favorite hobby every time they came here. Pelican Cove was lucky, they had lifeguards who patrolled the beach during the summer season, both for the families and for the ardent surfers who spent most of the day on the waves.

  There were lots of families here, all resting back and enjoying their time at the beach.

  Families.

  Something about the word made her uncomfortable again. She cast her eyes around the beach. Would other people think they were a family? A happy mom, dad and son spending a day at the beach?

  Her eyes fell on Luke as he leaned back with his eyes closed on the towel. With his white-blond hair and matching swimwear it was likely that people would assume he was Reuben’s father. She bit her lip.

  But he wasn’t. And he hadn’t wanted to be. He hadn’t wanted to be a father to any child. So why was he here playing happy families with her today?

  Abby gave a sigh and leaned back against her towel. There was no point in thinking about this. There was no point in over-analysing things. What was done was done. In a few days’ time Luke would be gone again. So maybe she should just focus on the good. The companionship. The warmth, the comfort and the passion. It could be a long time before she felt those things again.

  Luke was dreaming. Or maybe it was daydreaming. The sun was beating down on his skin and if he just turned on his side and reached out there was a warm body next to his. A warm body that arched, then fitted comfortably next to his, sliding into place as if it was always meant to be there, easing tight butt cheeks right against his …

  ‘Luke!’

  The enthusiastic voice pulled him from the wonderland he’d been inhabiting, jerking him back to present day and time. Or maybe he hadn’t been dreaming. His body was spooned around Abby’s, his hand wrapped tightly around her waist. Now, if he just lifted his hand a little more and slipped it underneath her shirt …