by Ann Evans
But the backyard bore his imprint. And he’d discovered he liked it that way.
Through the glass he watched J.D. and Pete playing on the swings. They were dressed and ready to go to Aunt Penelope’s birthday reunion in the park. Even from here he could see that their cheeks were as bright as new apples from the cool fall air.
Mark tapped on the glass, drawing their attention. They smiled and waved at him, and he mimed a look at his watch, then gestured for them to come inside. Always ready to take the lead, Pete nodded and jumped off his seat, nudging J.D. ahead of him.
Jenna’s boys were his now, too. He’d officially adopted them, and he couldn’t have loved them more if they’d been his own blood. And he was pretty sure they felt the same way about him.
J.D. had had little problem taking to Mark. He was an easygoing kid who saw life as an adventure and met every challenge with curious delight. It probably didn’t hurt that his new stepfather shared his interest in the space program and never minded long discussions on the possibility of life on other planets.
Pete had been another story. He was a handful, strong-willed and obstinate at times. But he had also been desperately eager to have a father figure in his life again, and over time he and Mark had found their way with each other, developing a closeness that seemed rock-solid.
He thought about all the worrying he’d done early in the marriage and how foolish it all seemed in retrospect. There were still times when his gut clenched at the thought of making some crucial family decision, when he wondered if he was saying or doing the right thing for all of them. But whatever fears he’d had were always chased away quickly. Because Jenna was there with him, helping him every step of the way, and whenever he looked at her, somehow every crisis seemed manageable.
That adjustment for him, the realization that he could be a good father and husband, that he could share both trouble and triumph with another human being, hadn’t been easy, either. Sometimes Mark felt as though the last three years of his life had been spent trying to find a path through an alternative universe.
Frightening.
Exhilarating.
Unbelievably rewarding.
It wasn’t that he’d changed really. It was more a case of redefining priorities. He still cared about the business. He still kept a close eye on the bottom line and oversaw every acquisition, every shift in market share. The newspapers were doing well, even the Orlando market, now that he’d promoted Deb to a top-management level.
It was just that, from the day he’d married Jenna three years ago in her father’s living room, he’d stopped feeling the need to fill every minute of every day with business. He still went in to work, but now he couldn’t wait to get back here.
Home.
He’d discovered that making a living wasn’t nearly as crucial and satisfying as making a life.
And that, he was getting pretty good at.
“Daddy, hug.” Evie’s voice drew Mark out of his thoughts. Her small body attached itself to his knees, almost knocking him off balance.
He smiled down at her indulgently—and discovered that, except for a pair of frilly panties, she was completely naked.
Evidently he wasn’t as in command of the situation as he’d thought. Twenty minutes of struggling to make sense of a little girl’s jumper and tights had all been for nothing.
“Evie,” Mark groaned. He began scooping up articles of clothing, while his daughter still clung to his leg like a barnacle, giggling the entire time. “We’re going to be late, and your mother is going to blame me.”
“No, I won’t,” Jenna said from the doorway of Evie’s room. “Even I can’t get her to stay in her clothes these days.”
Mark looked up and smiled as his wife came toward him. This was one of the unexpected delights—he never got tired of looking at Jenna. He’d thought that eventually he’d get used to it. That there would be times when he’d be too tired, too distracted, that sooner or later she would become a steady, pleasant presence in his life.
But it never happened that way. He never lost that little leap of his heart when she entered the room, that slightly breathless feeling he had when he saw her for the first time after an absence of only minutes. It was such a foolishly romantic reaction. It was embarrassing to realize that he was still so besotted with Jenna that he couldn’t control his own body.
“Help!” he appealed to her as he shook the leg Evie had attached herself to. “I’ve grown a wart.”
Evie giggled and clung harder.
Just then the boys burst into the room, full of enthusiasm and energy, loud and excited about spending a day with all their cousins. Evie adored J.D. and Pete, and they adored her, even though they’d been disappointed to discover there was a whole new world to learn about having a sister. Squealing, she detached herself from Mark’s leg and ran toward them.
“Look, Evie,” Pete said, holding out his hand to his sister. “Look at the cool rock I found. See the sparkly flecks in it? I’ll bet that’s gold. Do you know what gold is?”
“It’s not gold,” J.D. refuted with a frown. “It fell from some planet. It’s not just a dumb Earth rock.”
The three of them hunched over the pebble in Pete’s hand, their faces displaying identical interest. Mark and Jenna watched them with pleased grins. The boys were so gentle with Evie, especially Pete.
Jenna crossed to Mark and turned, offering her back to him. “Now do my buttons. Unlike Evie, I promise I’ll keep my clothes on.”
“In that case,” he said with a low laugh, “I’m not sure I want to.”
He handed her Evie’s jumper, sweater and tights, then set about closing the tiny buttons along the back of Jenna’s blouse. She could probably have managed on her own just fine—there were only three, after all—but he loved this ritual between them, this little game. He’d always been crazy about her back and neck, and now he let his hands travel slowly, lightly, up her spine, playing gently against the silky flesh. Jenna drew a deeper breath every time his fingers touched her, but she didn’t move. He knew her well enough now. Everything in her was focused on the soft, sure feel of his hands on her flesh.
Eventually the task was done. The bare back of Jenna’s neck was like a work of art to him, and also one of her most sensitive spots. He dipped his head and placed his lips against the small, delicate vertebra that disappeared beneath the edge of her blouse.
“All finished,” he said softly, savoring her warm, sweetly scented skin.
She looked back over her shoulder. The smile she gave him sent his nerves zigzagging. “I wish there were more.”
He turned her around, pulling her against him so that he could kiss her properly. The thought skittered through his addled brain that nobody kissed the way Jenna did. “Remind me to take you shopping tomorrow,” he said, nuzzling the fine hairs against one of her ears. “All new clothes. With a million buttons in the back.”
“Gross!” he heard Pete exclaim. “No kissing this early.”
Jenna and Mark smiled at being caught. Without looking at their son, Jenna said, “Boys, take Evie downstairs and get your jackets on. We’ll be down in a minute.”
Both boys giggled. “Mo-om,” J.D. said. “We can’t take Evie to the park like this.”
“Oh.” Jenna pulled out of Mark’s embrace, realizing that she still had Evie’s clothes clutched in her hand. “Not a good idea,” she said with a grin. “Come here, Evie.”
Their daughter obeyed. Jenna knelt, and in an amount of time that made Mark feel depressingly inept, Jenna had the little girl ready to go. She gave her a kiss on the nose, then sent her gently toward the boys, who had discovered that their sister’s toys weren’t completely uninteresting.
“The three of you go downstairs,” Jenna said again. “We’ll be right down. I want to talk to your father a minute.”
“Don’t take long,” Pete said, scrunching up one side of his nose and mouth. “I don’t want to be late. Uncle Trent promised to sit in the dunking booth no matte
r how cold it gets today.”
“Can we get a pony?” J.D. asked, galloping one of Evie’s stuffed unicorns along the back of her play table.
“No,” Jenna replied.
“I was asking Daddy.”
“No,” Mark said.
“I didn’t think so,” J.D. conceded.
The boys marched out of the room, Evie hot on their heels. They made so much noise going down the stairs that the neighbors probably heard them.
When it was quiet once more, Mark pulled Jenna back into his arms. He grinned down at her. “You’re not going to try to persuade me that we need a pony, are you? The backyard just isn’t big enough.”
“No. But we might want to consider adding on to the house. The doctor’s office called. We’re pregnant.”
The grin faded from his mouth. He knew he must look dumbfounded. “What? How can that be?”
“Well…” Jenna cleared her throat, and he witnessed color rise in her cheeks. Even after all this time, she still blushed easily. “I think we know how. The question is, what do you think about it?”
He glanced down at her stomach, touching it lightly, trying to imagine how small their child must be right now. Then he looked up at her. Her eyes were shining, full of love and fragile elation, and he let the pleasure of that moment flow through him.
“I love you, sweetheart,” he told her around a trio of soft, whispery kisses. “I love you for wanting my babies. I love you for not giving up on me and making me the happiest man who ever lived.”
She laughed and when she pulled back at last, she cocked her head at him. “You know, I think you’re turning into an incurable romantic.”
“When it comes to loving you, I’m completely hopeless.”
He hugged her close again. Over the top of her head, he said almost in awe, “Another baby. A sister for Eve.”
“Or maybe another boy,” Jenna speculated. “Goodness knows, I need another male in my life.”
“Let’s tell the kids. Right now. And call Lauren and Vic. Hell, why don’t we let all the McNabs know today?”
“Slow down,” Jenna said with another laugh. “We don’t have to tell everyone right this minute. We have time.”
“Right,” he said. He took her fingers, touching his lips to the back of her hand. “But let’s at least tell the boys, if not the whole family.”
She nodded agreement, and he led her out of the room.
Family, he thought as they went down the stairs. He still couldn’t get over how good that word felt. How big a void family could fill. Why had he been running from it so long when it offered such a sense of purpose? Such a feeling of belonging?
Maybe you needed the right woman. The right kids. The right reasons to try.
He had all that now. The certainty of that rang true in his heart. And he wasn’t doing such a bad job. No doubt about it.
He was getting the hang of it.
ISBN: 978-1-4592-3643-1
AFTER THAT NIGHT
Copyright © 2003 by Ann Bair.
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
® and TM are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.
Visit us at www.eHarlequin.com