by Debbie Mason
“You know him pretty well. You were in the bathtub together, and you had no clothes on.”
“Of course I had clothes on.” She laughed, only nerves made her sound like a braying donkey. “It might not have looked that way, but I had on…a bathing suit! A white one.” She needed a distraction. “Here.” She opened the container on her lap and offered it to him. “Have an energy ball.”
She pulled the container back. “You don’t have allergies, do you? On second thought, you should probably ask your dad if it’s okay.” She fitted the lid back on and handed him the container. “If it is, you can share with your brothers.”
“Did you make them?”
“I did.” She smiled, relieved that her plan had worked.
“Do you like to cook?”
“I love to cook.”
“Just good food or do you make fun food too?”
“Are cookies and cakes considered fun food?” He nodded. “There you go, I never knew. I make fun food too.”
“Do you mind if your sons play outside and get dirty?”
“To tell you the truth, I’d love if Oliver and Brooks played outside and got dirty once in a while, Teddy.”
“Would you get mad at them if they were playing in the house and broke something?”
“Not if it was an accident. Did you break something when you were playing inside?”
“No, my brothers broke a doll at my grandmother’s. They didn’t mean to, but she got really mad at them and made them go to their room.” He leaned in and whispered, “She made them stay in there until dinnertime. We didn’t tell my dad though.”
She’d only met Diane Rollins at the country club a couple of times, but she wasn’t surprised by what Teddy shared. “Maybe you should tell your dad, sweetie.”
“I can’t, remember? I have a plan.”
“Right, your plan. Well, I haven’t known you for long, Teddy, but I have a feeling any plan you come up with will absolutely work.” She also thought his father deserved to know what was going on with his mother-in-law but didn’t feel it was her place to tell him.
“I wasn’t sure it would work, but now I am.”
“That’s a great attitude, Teddy. You just stay positive,” she said, thinking as much about her own plan as his. “And don’t let anyone tell you that it won’t work.”
He high-fived her, and she high-fived him back with a smile as big as his.
“I’m going to tell my dad,” he said, and from behind him came a voice Mallory had hoped not to hear until their Monday morning coffee meeting.
“Tell your dad what?” Gabe asked, coming to stand behind his son. He rested his big, bare hands on Teddy’s shoulders, and heat spread from Mallory’s chest to her cheeks as her mind rather inconveniently provided her with a slide show of images from last night.
“Mallory says my plan is going to work. So you don’t have to worry anymore, Dad.”
She dragged her gaze from Gabe’s hands to his face, which did nothing to cool her heated cheeks. He looked like he’d just rolled out of bed. His thick, black hair was a gorgeous mess and the stubble on his jaw gave him a casually sexy air. The dark Henley he wore with his jeans and steel-toe boots gave off the same vibe while also highlighting his broad shoulders and wide chest. Just as the well-worn jeans showed off his long legs and muscular thighs.
“She did, did she?”
He didn’t sound happy, and she glanced up. He held her gaze, a dark eyebrow raised.
She didn’t know what to say. Sorry for ogling you? Or sorry for encouraging your little boy? The latter, no doubt. But he probably wasn’t so worried about Teddy sharing his plan with her as he was that his son might have shared the reason why he needed one.
“Yep, so you should ask her now. We don’t have a lot of time.” He tipped his head to smile up at his unsmiling father and held up the container. “Mallory made them for us.”
Oh my gosh, why did he say that? Now Gabe would think she was trying to bribe him or that she had a crush on him. “I, um, actually made them for—”
Apparently Teddy didn’t hear her and kept talking. “She loves to cook, she loves to bake, and she doesn’t mind kids getting dirty or breaking things, and she’s really pretty, and you like her car.”
She raised a finger. “Teddy, I think I might’ve missed something. What is your plan exactly?”
“We need a mom, and I pick you.”
Chapter Nine
Mallory stared at the little boy smiling at her. She couldn’t believe it. Teddy had actually been interviewing her to be his mother.
Now what was she supposed to do? Truthfully, she was touched he’d chosen her to be his mom. After spending the past two months feeling like a failure in the stepmom department, it was nice to be wanted.
Gabe saved her from having to respond. “Buddy, you can’t go around auditioning women to be your mother.”
“How come? We need a mom who doesn’t mind if we get dirty or break things, Dad. Cody and Dylan do it all the time. And we need a mom who likes to cook because you don’t. You interview people. That’s how you know if they’re good or bad, and I know Mallory is good.”
Gabe’s mouth twitched. “You make some excellent points, honey. You’ve obviously given this some serious thought, but you forgot one important thing.”
“Yeah, what’s that?”
“I have to marry the person you choose, and I’m kinda fussy. So if you don’t mind, I’d like to pick my own wife.”
“Don’t you like Mallory?”
“I do, but we don’t know each other—” At Mallory’s squeak of dismay, he glanced at her. He was walking into the same trap she had, and it was embarrassing. “Very well.”
“You do so, Dad. You were in the bathtub together and Mallory was nak—”
“Okay, I think we’re done here. Your favorite YouTuber called. Seems Abby arranged a special breakfast with you and Santa, so you better go and get dressed.”
“No way!” Teddy looked like he might cry.
“Way.” His father grinned at him. Then he took him by the shoulders and turned him toward the house. “Get your brothers out of bed.”
“Aw, Dad, they won’t want to go. They’ll make a big fuss and ruin everything.”
“I promise I won’t let them ruin anything. It’s a pancake breakfast, and you know how much they like pancakes.”
“Can Mallory come? She likes Santa too.”
Getting the distinct impression that Gabe didn’t want her hanging out with them, she said, “Thanks for thinking of me, Teddy. Any other time I would’ve loved to go with you, but I have to finish unpacking. Maybe I’ll see you at the parade though.” It was the perfect opportunity to kick off her plan. Surely the parade would get her stepsons in the Christmas spirit.
“Okay. We’ll be standing in front of the police station.”
“Sounds great. Have fun at your breakfast with Santa.” She would’ve loved to see his face when he met the man himself. Maybe she’d ask Abby to send her a picture. She inwardly rolled her eyes at herself. If she did that, her best friend would totally up her matchmaking game.
“Get going, buddy.” Gabe patted his butt to get him moving.
Teddy glanced at his father over his shoulder. “Aren’t you coming?”
“I’ll be there in a minute. I just want to talk to Mallory for a sec.” At his son’s big, knowing, gap-toothed grin, Gabe sighed and grumbled, “Teddy.”
Gabe waited until the back door closed behind his son to turn to her. “Scooch over. It’s freezing out here.”
She stared at him. “You want me to crawl over the console and get in the passenger seat?”
“Yeah.” He smiled and waggled his eyebrows. “I’ve wanted to get behind the wheel of this baby from the moment I saw her.”
“So Teddy wasn’t lying. You really do like my car,” she said as she awkwardly climbed into the passenger-side seat.
“Ah, yeah. She’s a beauty. Don’t you?” he asked as he slid into
the driver’s seat. He adjusted her seat to make room for his long legs and big frame. Then he turned on the car and closed the door.
“Harry was into cars. He loved the Jag but they all look the same to me. Put me in a parking lot, and I wouldn’t be able to tell you which car was mine.”
“Okay, that’s just sacrilege.” He looked sincerely offended. “So what else did my precocious son say? Other than you were his choice for new mom.”
She watched as he ran his long, blunt fingers over the interior of her car and debated whether or not to tell him about his mother-in-law’s plans. Forewarned is forearmed, but she worried about breaking Teddy’s confidence.
He stopped midstroke to cock his head. “What is it?”
“Teddy told me something that I think you should know. I mean, I’d want to know if I were you.”
“Considering the position he was interviewing you for, I can take an educated guess.” He twisted his hands on the steering wheel. “He’s worried my mother-in-law is going after custody. It’s my fault. They overheard me talking to Karl. I should’ve been more careful. But I’ve put up with Diane’s veiled threats for the past couple years, and I guess they’ve worn me down.”
“I’m so sorry, Gabe. That must be horrible for you and the boys.”
“I used to be able to convince myself I was wrong. But last night, it was obvious I’d been right all along.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Only thing I can do. Hire a lawyer.”
“That’s a good idea.”
His eyes narrowed. “You’re not telling me something. What is it?”
“Please don’t tell Teddy I told you. I wouldn’t want him to think he can’t trust me. But I think it’s important for you to know. Teddy overheard Diane speaking to a lawyer.”
He slapped the heel of his palm against the steering wheel and grimaced. “Sorry.”
She touched his arm. “Don’t apologize. I can’t imagine what this is like for you.”
“Of course you can. Indirectly, I’m playing the role of Diane in your custody nightmare.”
“It’s not the same at all. The boys are yours, and they obviously adore you. They’d be devastated if your mother-in-law got custody, which, by the way, no judge in their right mind would grant.”
“Except we both know that if someone has the money and connections and they’re willing to do whatever it takes to win, there’s a ninety-nine-point-nine-percent chance the verdict will go their way. Don’t deny it,” he said when she opened her mouth. “That’s what happened to you.”
“No, it’s not, Gabe. I gave up. I didn’t have the energy left to fight. Or the desire. The only reason I didn’t walk away in the beginning was I wanted to honor Harry’s last wishes. But as time passed and the court battle dragged on, I began to believe Marsha had a point. Maybe the only reason Harry married me was because he knew he was dying. I might not have completed my residency, but I had the qualifications to care for him. In the beginning, maybe he even clung to the hope that together we could beat it.
“Except when all was said and done, he had to settle for someone to simply care for him until he took his last breath.” She looked down at her hands twisting in her lap. She no longer wore her wedding ring.
“You can’t seriously believe that, Mallory. You’re gorgeous, smart, and sweet. Any man would count himself lucky if you agreed to be his wife.”
She’d counted herself lucky that Harry had wanted to marry her. Everyone told her she was, including Marsha and Blair an hour before her wedding.
“You forgot that I can cook and don’t mind kids getting dirty or breaking things,” she teased. Gabe playing a starring role in her daydreams was one thing but contemplating anything more than that would only lead to heartache.
“My son’s smart and has great taste.” Gabe moved the steering wheel with his finger. “We’re not kids, so I’m not going to play games or dance around the truth. I think it’s pretty obvious that I’m attracted to you.”
Her heart took a panicked leap. Why couldn’t he be like other men and play games? Why did he have to be honest and good and someone she could only dream of having a happily-ever-after with? She wasn’t as brave as him. What she felt for him was so much more than a simple attraction.
“Abby seemed to think so.” It was all she’d allow herself to admit.
He shifted in the driver’s seat to look at her. “You honestly couldn’t tell I was attracted to you last summer? That I’m still attracted to you?”
“Maybe. But then you arrested me, and I preferred ignoring you and…and my attraction to you. Yesterday was more of the same. I seem to have a love-hate relationship with you, Chief Buchanan.” Her cheeks flushed, and she shook her head. “I didn’t mean…you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, and in my defense, it’s not like I had a lot of choice. And I didn’t arrest you yesterday.”
“From where I’m sitting, you might as well have.”
“I’ll talk to Kayla, see if we can’t cut your probationary period down to a month.”
“‘Probationary period.’ Do you see what I mean?”
“Nothing I can say will make you feel better about this, but could you withhold judgment for now? If we put our heads together, we might be able to come up with a strategy that’ll actually work. It sometimes helps to have a fresh pair of eyes look at the situation.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry for overreacting. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” And his talk about how he felt about her was making her nervous.
“I didn’t hurt you when I fell on top of you, did I?” He pushed his fingers through his dark, messy hair. Clearly, he’d been doing that a lot this morning. “I should’ve stuck around to make sure you were all right, but the last thing I wanted was my mother-in-law seeing us, seeing you—”
“Trust me, the last thing I wanted was for Diane Rollins to walk in on us like that. It was bad enough Teddy did.” She made a face. “He thinks I was naked. I told him I was wearing a bathing suit.”
His lips twitched. “That must’ve been an interesting conversation.”
“One I’d rather not repeat, to tell you the truth.”
“Yeah, that’s kinda why I thought we should talk.” His eyes moved over her face. “As much as I agree with everything Teddy said about you, it would probably be best if we avoid being in each other’s company around him. I don’t want him to get the wrong idea. The kid’s tenacious. When he’s got a plan, he doesn’t give up. And right now, he has his eyes firmly set on you for his new mom.”
“To thwart his grandma.”
He moved his head from left to right. “Yes, and no. He just started kindergarten this year, and some of the moms volunteer. He’s the only one in his class without one, so he’s been hinting for a couple months now that I should get out there and start dating again. He offered to set up a Tinder account for me.”
Mallory laughed. “That I would’ve liked to see. But it’s a little scary how smart he is.”
“You’re telling me. His new plan is scary too. Not the part about you, although, yeah, that is kinda scary too. But it’s his time line that concerns me most. He was adamant that I didn’t have time to waste finding a new wife. I didn’t pay much attention to it last night. I was more interested in calming their fears. But after what he heard, my gut says Diane’s planning to serve me with a petition for custody at the beginning of the new year.”
“Or maybe she’s hoping that you’ll deal with whatever concerns she’s having about the boys?”
He scrubbed a hand over his jaw. “It’s my parenting she’s concerned about. Diane and Karl moved in with us when my wife died. My family’s close, but my mom and dad still work and my brothers have busy lives of their own. At first, having Diane and Karl there was a godsend. I don’t know how I would’ve gotten through those first months without them. Teddy was a toddler, but the twins were struggling, and I couldn’t afford to take time off. My job—” He grimaced. “S
orry, I don’t know why I’m telling you all of this.”
“Don’t apologize. I’m happy to listen. Like you said, sometimes it helps to talk things out with someone who isn’t emotionally invested. Although, to be honest, I’m feeling pretty invested, and I hardly know you and your sons.”
“I really wish things could be different, Mallory. But despite what Teddy thinks, the worst thing I could do right now is get involved with someone. No matter how much I want to.” He smiled, reaching over to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.
His fingers lingered on her cheek. She wanted to hold them there. Just for a few minutes. Because this was as close as she and Gabe Buchanan could ever be.
“Especially with someone like me. No, don’t deny it,” she said when he went to object. “Please, Gabe, let’s be honest with each other. I would be the worst person for you to get involved with. Diane would crucify you in court. Her lawyer would present every lie the press printed about me last year. And after yesterday, she’d have the evidence to portray me as an unfit mother.”
He stared out the windshield. “Over the last eighteen months, Diane has given me plenty to be angry about. I moved away from my family and a job I loved to make her happy. But I don’t think I’ve ever been as angry at her as I am now.” He turned his head to hold her gaze. “There’s something about you, Mallory Maitland. And I’m afraid I’m making one of the biggest mistakes of my life not saying to hell with Diane to see where this might take us.”
He was going to make her cry. She had to think of something to lighten the mood. “You never know—she may have done you a favor. I have a difficult time with two boys in my life. What would I do with five, six including you? Now if you would’ve had girls…” She trailed off, her teasing smile fading at the look in his eyes.
“My son isn’t only smart. He’s an excellent judge of character. So I don’t doubt, given half a chance, that you’ll make a wonderful mother.”
Chapter Ten