Megan’s family was like the stray retriever, he decided. They were all leery and somewhat suspicious of him and his motives. Jonas would simply have to show them that he was one of the good guys.
‘Is this yours?’ he asked softly, holding it up so Trevor could see the pictures.
Without hesitation, Trevor approached Jonas. Using Jonas’s denim-clad legs to pull himself upright, he rose, and once his feet were planted firmly beneath him he raised his arms.
Jonas smiled. It didn’t require experience to understand what the toddler wanted. ‘Do you want to sit with me?’
Trevor grunted and Jonas lifted him onto his lap. The little boy immediately snuggled next to him and pointed to the picture.
Jonas was stunned beyond belief by Trevor’s instant trust. How could Dwight have had second thoughts about raising these kids as his own? Had the man lost his mind?
Trevor tapped the picture impatiently and Jonas dropped those thoughts to begin reading the story.
By the time Angie appeared with five pairs of angel wings in an assortment of colors, and Megan returned with glasses of ice water, Jonas was on page five.
He stopped reading as soon as he saw the strangest expression on Megan’s face. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘Nothing. I’m just surprised. Trevor won’t go to strangers. Why, he wouldn’t even sit on Dwight’s lap and he’s known him for ever.’
Jonas grinned, privately thrilled that he had one advantage over the plastic surgeon. ‘I have the touch, I guess.’
Trevor grunted and pointed.
‘I think I’m supposed to finish reading.’
Megan smiled. ‘You’d better or he’ll never give you a moment’s peace.’
Several minutes later, Jonas said the magic words, ‘The end.’ Trevor closed the book and slid down Jonas’s leg. As soon as his feet touched the carpeting, he toddled over to Megan and begged to sit in her lap.
A smile broke out on Megan’s exhausted face as she hauled the little boy into her embrace. She set him in the crook of one arm and brushed the lightest kiss on his temple as she hugged him close.
Watching Trevor lean against Megan’s softness made him realize how provocative a picture it was. He’d seen other friends, other parents, cuddle their children, but those sights hadn’t packed the same punch that the one with Megan did.
Angie immediately thrust her angel wings under Jonas’s nose and he reluctantly turned his attention to her. ‘Aren’t they be-oo-tiful?’ she crooned.
Her wings came in nearly every color of the rainbow. Each set was made of sheer fabric and decorated with glitter. Some had sequins haphazardly glued on, which added to the wings’ sparkle.
‘These are the best angel wings I’ve ever seen,’ he told her solemnly. ‘You must take good care of them.’
Angie preened under his attention. ‘I do.’
‘Did you help make them?’
Her head bobbed up and down. ‘I sprinkled the glitter.’
‘You did a great job.’
‘Mommy did most of the work.’
He smiled. ‘Then she did a great job, too.’
‘Why don’t you put them in your closet for safekeeping?’ Megan asked. ‘It’s almost time for your bath and then bed.’
Jonas thought he detected a note of relief in her voice. He carefully placed the revered wings in Angie’s arms. ‘Thanks for showing them to me.’
‘You’re welcome.’ Angie carefully carried them out of the room.
Megan tickled Trevor’s belly. ‘Are you ready for your bath?’ she asked.
He giggled with delight. ‘Baa,’ he repeated.
Sensing his cue to leave on his errand, Jonas rose. ‘I suppose I’ve given the pharmacy enough time to process your script. I’ll be back soon.’
‘I’ll leave the door unlocked,’ she said. ‘In this house, bathtime is playtime and we don’t rush.’
A mental image of Megan lounging in a tub and wearing nothing but bubbles made him forget to exhale. At the same time his body seemed to catch fire. If it had been anyone else, he would have followed her statement with a quip or some witty banter. Conserve water, share a tub, sprang to mind.
Then, before he could recover from that picture, Trevor fisted the fabric between her breasts to keep his balance as she rose, and Jonas caught a substantial glimpse of creamy skin.
He needed to leave before he totally embarrassed himself.
‘I’ll yell before I walk in,’ he said as he headed for the door.
Driving through town, he willed himself back to normal. His good deed was rapidly turning into something painful, but he couldn’t stay away from her any more than he could compete in the Olympics.
At Farley’s Drug Store, he handed over the script he’d written for Megan and identified himself to the pharmacist on duty. After a brief conversation, he left with pills in hand.
Back at Megan’s house, he was surprised to see Angie sitting on the porch’s top step with Trevor on her lap. She wore a pink nightgown, fuzzy pink slippers and white angel wings, while Trevor was dressed in a footed blue sleeper.
‘What are you two doing out here?’ he asked.
‘Mommy made us.’
‘Why?’
‘’Cause our house is on fire.’
CHAPTER SIX
STAY calm.
Megan squinted to see her way through the thick haze. Her stove was smoking like a chimney as it devoured the cupcakes she’d been baking. It was bad enough that her kitchen, dining room and living room were filled with a gray fog, but if Angie hadn’t gone to the living room to choose a bedtime story book and run back to report this unusual event when she had, the damage could have been far worse.
She clicked off the oven, wondering if that would be of any value at this point, and rummaged through the lower shelf of her pantry for the fire extinguisher.
It wasn’t there.
Wait. She’d moved it during her last major housecleaning to the cupboard beside the stove. Her eyes burned and filled with tears from the irritants in the air and she coughed.
She should have called 911, she thought as her fingers closed around the handle and she hauled it out of its storage place. Before she could release the pin and aim the nozzle of her ABC fire extinguisher inside the oven, large hands covered hers and a deep voice filled her ears.
‘Get out.’
‘This is my house and my fire. I’ll take care of it.’
‘No, you won’t.’ He grabbed the extinguisher from her hands. ‘Call the fire department and stop arguing. Now, get back!’
Immediately Jonas pulled the pin, aimed the nozzle as he inched open the door and squeezed the trigger. Foam shot inside, covering the burning mass of what once had been cupcakes. She didn’t think cake could catch fire, but obviously, as the food burned, the paper liners had burst into flame.
Realizing there was little else for her to do, she hurriedly placed the call, then ran outside to see that Angie and Trevor were exactly where she’d left them.
‘Everything’s fine,’ she told the pair. ‘Just sit tight for a few more minutes.’
‘My angel wings,’ Angie wailed.
‘They’re OK.’ Megan went back inside and opened every window to help rid the place of smoke. She returned to the kitchen and found Jonas standing in front of her stove with white foam dripping onto his shoes.
‘What are you doing in here?’ he demanded.
‘Trying to clear out the smoke. Surveying the damage.’
He pointed to the white-covered mass. ‘Whatever those were, I don’t think you’re going to be serving them.’
She heaved a sigh. She could have saved herself all sorts of trouble if she’d just stopped at the store on her way home from work. But, no, Angie had wanted home-made goodies and nothing else would do.
‘Those were chocolate cupcakes for Angie to take to day care tomorrow. Everyone was supposed to bring something to share at their picnic.’
‘Unless she’s going to c
ontribute charcoal, I think she’ll have to take something else.’
Megan wanted to smile at his humor, but didn’t have the energy. A siren screamed in the distance and all she could focus on was how much she dreaded the next few hours.
Hours, heck. The next few days, not to mention weeks, would be another load on her over-burdened shoulders.
‘We’d better go outside,’ she said wearily.
She hadn’t reached the door before Trevor’s shrill cries joined the sirens. The second her feet hit the porch, he held out his arms and his cries turned into hiccups.
‘Were you scared?’ she soothed as she took him from Angie’s hold. He sniffled and she wiped away the trail of tears on his cheeks, realizing she was leaving soot on his face. She wasn’t in the best shape to hold a freshly bathed baby, but if being in her filthy arms calmed him down, then so be it.
What she wouldn’t give for a trip to the bathroom. Her eyes still burned and she probably had as many, if not more smudges on her face than Jonas sported on his.
She moved Trevor to one hip and caught a whiff of herself. The odor of smoke nearly made her gag. ‘My clothes are ruined.’
‘Probably.’
She glanced at Jonas. ‘I owe you a new outfit.’
He shrugged. ‘We’ll see.’
Megan started to argue, but Angie tugged on the hem of Megan’s shirt. ‘I wasn’t scared,’ she reported matter-of-factly.
Vowing to revisit the subject with Jonas at a later date, Megan looked at her daughter. ‘You weren’t?’
The youngster shook her head, then inclined it in Jonas’s direction. ‘Nope. ’Cause he was here.’
Megan glanced at the man who, in the space of an hour, had added another member to his already huge fan club. It was irritating to know that Angie had succumbed so easily to his charm. Not only did dogs and women fall at his feet, but children as well.
What added insult to injury was how she, too, found it comforting to have Jonas beside her as a fire truck and two police cars rolled into the street. One police car blocked the intersection so other traffic couldn’t enter, the other parked near her house and the fluorescent yellow fire truck stopped in front of the city’s water hydrant not far away. Their red and blue flashing emergency lights were like beacons in the growing darkness.
Men spilled out of the truck, all clad in typical firefighter’s gear of yellow reflective striped jackets, rubber pants, black boots and yellow helmets. Several began unrolling hose from the truck while others prepared to hook one end to the water supply.
Three fireman rushed to the porch, the lead man presumably being the captain of this crew.
‘It was the stove,’ Jonas reported. ‘As far as I can tell, the fire’s out. Fortunately, we had an extinguisher.’
The captain acknowledged Jonas’s report with a nod. ‘We’ll check it out to be sure.’ He spoke into his walkietalkie to someone near the truck and the activity on their end came to a halt.
As the three disappeared inside, Megan’s adrenaline rush faded, leaving her with a stomach that wanted to turn itself inside out. It didn’t help to have to go through the story with the police officer for his report. He wrote down everything, including her name, address, phone number, insurance company and employer.
By the time he snapped his little notepad closed, Megan was totally drained. She sank onto one of the plastic lawn chairs she’d purchased last summer and closed her eyes to the neighbors gathering under the streetlamp.
‘I feel like such an idiot. I can’t believe I forgot to set the timer.’ By the time she’d gotten home, she’d no longer functioned at peak efficiency and she’d known it, which was why she’d resorted to serving canned spaghetti. In fact, she’d been operating at fifty per cent, and it was obvious that that level wasn’t good enough. She had two children depending on her and she couldn’t afford to make such simple mistakes.
‘I’m sure you’re not the first person who’s cremated cupcakes,’ Jonas said dryly. ‘And I doubt if you’re the last.’
‘That makes me feel better.’
Captain Rucker, according to his sewn-on name tag, joined them on the porch with his men. ‘Everything’s clear. We took what was left of your pan into the back yard. Before you replace your stove, you should have your electrician check the wiring. You basically have smoke damage, but it’s not bad. A good cleaning service should take care of that.’
‘Thanks.’
The men headed down the steps, but the captain stopped at the bottom. ‘Oh, and one more thing.’ His eyes held a definite twinkle. ‘Be sure and recharge your extinguisher.’
‘She will,’ Jonas answered.
As soon as the vehicles started down the street, the small crowd of neighbors advanced. ‘Oh, dear,’ Megan muttered under her breath. ‘Here they come.’
‘This is probably the most excitement these folks have seen in a long time,’ he answered.
‘Yeah, well, I wish someone else had provided them with their cheap thrill.’
‘On the bright side, you’ll only have to tell your story once. Who’s the ringleader?’
‘Mrs Ostwell. My next-door neighbor. The one who complains if Angie runs across her yard.’
‘I assume she’s also the block’s center of information?’
‘Chief gossip and tale-bearer,’ she agreed, pasting a smile on her face just as the seventy-year-old lady marched up the driveway.
‘My goodness, dear. What happened?’
‘Megan had some problems with her oven,’ Jonas supplied. ‘The captain suggested that she check out her wiring.’
Megan glanced at him, too surprised to contradict him and too grateful to try. He’d told just enough of the truth to satisfy their curiosity without painting her as incompetent.
‘That’s too bad.’ Mrs Ostwell clucked her tongue. ‘Can’t be too careful with appliances these days. It’s a good thing you were home when it happened.’
‘Absolutely,’ Megan choked out as she met Jonas’s gaze.
‘If you’ll excuse us,’ Jonas said, ‘we need to get the children indoors. I’m sure you wouldn’t want them to become ill in the night air.’
‘Oh, no. Not at all.’ Mrs Ostwell and her cronies backed away. ‘If you need any advice, you just call on me.’
Not likely, she thought. ‘Thank you, I will,’ Megan replied instead. ‘And thanks for being so concerned about us.’
‘Goodnight,’ Jonas added, and immediately ushered them into the house.
The acrid scent of smoke seemed stronger than before and Megan’s stomach protested vehemently. Try as she may, this time she couldn’t will the churning to stop. Gritting her teeth, she thrust Trevor at Jonas and bolted for the bathroom.
Jonas stared at the little boy who clearly wasn’t sure about this sudden development. In fact, Jonas was certain the toddler would object most vehemently but, oddly enough, after Trevor stared at him, the indecision in his eyes disappeared. He flung one arm around Jonas’s neck and laid his head on Jonas’s shoulder.
Jonas froze. The children he usually saw were either too sick to fight him or just sick enough to be frightened to death of the man who poked and prodded their small bodies. Trevor’s instant faith in him was humbling and at the same time both scary and awesome.
‘He’s tired,’ Angie said importantly.
‘I guess so. Shall we put him to bed?’
‘Trevor eats a snack first.’
‘OK. What kind of snack?’
‘Mommy mixes up some oatmeal for him. His milk is in the ’frigerator. Is she sick?’
Retching sounds drifted down the hallway. ‘Her stomach is upset, but she’ll be better soon.’
‘Oh.’ Angie wrinkled her nose. ‘Want me to show you where Trevor’s food is?’
The soft, steady breathing in Jonas’s ear and the limp arms and legs dangling in his embrace suggested that Trevor was already out for the count. ‘I think we’re too late. He’s asleep.’
Angie stood on tipto
e to see. ‘Yup, he is,’ she whispered. ‘I’ll show you where his bed is.’
‘Good idea.’
Jonas followed her down the hallway to a small room with a crib. He placed Trevor on the mattress and covered him with a comforter dotted with frolicking lambs. Angie snapped on the small lamp that served as his nightlight.
‘Now it’s your turn,’ he told her.
Angie led him to her room where a border featuring angels of all shapes and sizes circled the ceiling. She pulled back the pink gingham comforter and crawled underneath. ‘Mommy usually reads us a story before we go to sleep.’
Knowing the ritual was an important part of her bedtime routine, he nodded. ‘Do you want to choose one or should I?’
‘I will.’ She leaned over to her nightstand and grabbed a small book that was well worn. Since Jonas was eager to check on Megan, he was glad to see that he could easily read it in five minutes.
‘OK,’ he said, sitting on the edge of her bed. ‘Let’s read about Bert and Ernie.’
Five minutes later he turned the last page, but Angie’s eyes were still wide. ‘I can’t sleep. My room smells funny.’
The smoke had clearly infiltrated into this part of the house, although the odor wasn’t as strong as in the main living areas.
‘Try to relax while I talk to Megan and see what we can do. OK, half-pint?’
She giggled at his name. ‘Half-pint? What does that mean?’
He grinned. ‘It means you’re a little person and someday you’ll grow into a lovely lady like your mother. Now, close your eyes and think happy thoughts while I check on your mom.’
‘OK.’
Jonas found Megan standing near the phone as she studied the Yellow Pages. ‘Feeling better?’ he asked, turning a chair backwards to straddle it.
‘If you’re asking me if I found instant relief from the pills you brought, the answer is no. If you’re asking me how I feel about all this—’ she waved her hands in an all-encompassing motion ‘—the answer is still no. Are the kids asleep?’
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