Jay raised himself on one elbow, gazed down at her beauty, and moved his big protective hand to cover hers. His face suffused with joy, and he said the one thing that could prove it all true and send her heart soaring…
“Our son.”
THE END
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Sneak Peek: Dr Daddy Next Door
Rory
“I have always been a fan of silk ties and blindfolds,” Rosanna batted her eyelashes up at the object of her affection, smiling coquettishly when she raked a hand through his salt and pepper hair.
“I’m happy to show you the pleasures to be found without a few essential senses.” Dr. Hargrave removed the ever-present bowtie and corduroy blazer that made him look every inch the anthropology professor he was, and moved in closer.
Rosanna’s breath hitched. Her skin flushed and her pulse raced as he drew closer.
I leaned back in my oh-so-comfortable computer chair and blew out a long breath. The erotic romance I was writing was coming along nicely, and would be a good complement to my thesis. The examination of young women and sexuality when it came to older men was common throughout history and literature. It was, at least to me, the perfect project for my double masters in Modern Literature and Anthropology. I only hoped my professors thought so too.
With a crack of my knuckles and a jerk of my neck, I got back to work. I was at the good part, when the young and nubile Rosanna would slide her panties off and expose herself to the professor. That’s when I saw it, a small head topped with brown curls peeking inside my house. I grinned at her poor ninja skills, ducking down seconds after I’d already seen her, figuring she must belong to the new neighbors who moved in about a month ago. Between my final two graduate school courses and my job, correction my old job with television personality Dr. Todd, I’d been so buried in my own life that I hadn’t even met them yet.
The tiny brown head popped up again, in front of my picture window that overlooked the verdant backyard that I’d spent many hours tending in order to clear my head. To find inspiration. I waved and she ducked again, pulling an amused laugh from me.
Saving my document, I stood, stretching tense muscles before making my way to the door. The house was a white side-by-side duplex with blue trim. Though I hadn’t been inside since the firefighters moved out, I knew the other half of the building was the opposite of mine. The main rooms were switched, mine faced the backyard and theirs faced the street. I’d never been upstairs, but I figured that’s where two of the three bedrooms were located. I pulled open my door and stepped onto the shared porch, finding the little girl ducking behind the patio swing.
“Hey stranger, do you need some help?”
Big clear blue eyes the color of the sky peered up at me through a mess of curls. Finally, her head bobbed up and down, but that was it.
I dropped down onto the balls of my feet, ignoring the way my thighs screamed in protest. I’d skipped going to the gym lately because I was just too busy.
“I’m Rory and I live right here. What’s your name?”
“Sydney,” a soft voice said with hesitation.
“Nice to meet you Syd,” I held out my hand giving her a grownup shake that made her giggle. “Now, how can I help you?”
Those big blue eyes that made her look so vulnerable called out to me, but the way they darted off to the sides made me wary. Finally, she looked at me again, and I guess she decided she could trust me.
“My sitter didn’t show up.”
I blinked. This was out of my depth. What the hell did I know about little kids? Nothing, that’s what. The only little kid I knew was myself, and I had never really been a kid to be honest.
“Where are your parents?”
“My mommy is gone. My daddy is at work. He makes babies,” she offered proudly.
Instantly my heart went out to this adorable little girl with an ethereal beauty that would stun the world in a few years. Losing a parent was hard. I should know, I lost both of mine. That’s not true, exactly. I never knew my father because he’d left my mom long before I was born. But when I was fifteen I lost my mom. Literally. Came home from school two days before homecoming to find the entire apartment empty except for my room.
“I’m sorry about your mom kiddo. But why is your dad already gone if the sitter didn’t show up?” I stood up and tried to peek through the window above their closed door, but even with my own five-seven height, the window was too high. I tried the door knob, but it wouldn’t budge. She was locked out.
“Babies were coming and Amy said she was coming in five minutes,” she said with so much exasperation I had to bite back a smile. “It’s been longer than five minutes.”
“You’re probably bored and hungry, huh?”
Again, her head bobbed up and down as she inched closer to me, stealing inside my place before I changed my mind.
“I didn’t eat for a long time.”
“I’m just glad you didn’t try to cook on your own,” I told her and she gave me a perplexed frown.
“I’m too young to cook.” Her tone implied she thought I was an idiot, but her curious gaze held mine.
“I know.” She tried her best to climb up onto one of the counter stools, but she was just too tiny so I gave her a boost.
“Thanks,” she grinned, showing off a pretty smile full of baby teeth. “What are we having?”
Good question. I cooked for myself pretty regularly because it was cheaper and healthier and now that I didn’t have a job, health insurance had become a luxury. I scanned the fridge and found enough ingredients to make a meal. “How do you feel about spaghetti?”
“I love spaghetti!”
I wished something in my life gave me as much happiness and excitement as spaghetti gave Sydney. “Do you have a number for your dad?” She shook her head. “Can you tell me where he works?”
“He has a hospital for mommies and babies and he works at the big hospital too.”
Okay then. I just hoped that he didn’t freak out when he came home and found the little girl gone. I fixed spaghetti and listened while Sydney told me all about her daddy the Baby Doctor. She made him sound like a super hero, and I could admit to a healthy amount of curiosity about the man. Even though he had left his seven-year-old kid home alone. Sydney ate two servings of spaghetti, fruit and frozen yogurt before she passed out on the couch while I edited part of my thesis.
I must have fallen asleep at some point too because I woke up with a little girl sprawled across my chest, fifty pages of my thesis scattered on the floor and a god-awful pounding coming from somewhere. The door. Gingerly I moved Sydney off me and padded to the door, squinting up at five uniformed officers and—holy hotness batman—a dark angel masquerading as a fashion model. Black hair and silver-blue eyes were the highlights, but the sharp cheekbones and rugged jawbone that could chisel rock were all appealing too. His frown…not so much.
“Officers how can I help you?”
The one with the thick seventies porno moustache stepped forward. “We’re looking for a missing little girl,” he said and described the child sleeping on my sofa to a tee.
“Sydney? Yeah I’ve seen her, she was lurking on the back porch because her babysitter didn’t show.” I gave the sexy Baby Doctor a scathing glare. “And her father left her home alone. She was hungry, bored, alone and locked out,” I added.
Officer porno-stache pushed me aside and stormed in with the others. He grabbed Sydney, who woke with a shriek, while one of the other officers held me back. Because yeah, I was the threat.
“Why Rory? Wasn’t I good? I’ll be better I promise!”
“It’s okay Syd your dad is here,” I tried to soothe. “He was scared.”
She looked up at the man still wearing a scowl and even that made the i
rritating man look hot as hell. “I’m fine Daddy. Rory watched me.” She turned to me. “I was good wasn’t I?” At my nod, she ran to me and wrapped her little arms around my legs. “We’re friends now,” she said, to me or her father, I didn’t know.
“Try to get some sleep Syd,” I told her while her giant of a father continued to glare as though that alone could vaporize me.
“Night Rory.”
“Night,” he growled back, and not the sexy kind of growl either. The I’m pissed off and I want you to know it even though I’m still polite, kind of growl.
“Whatever,” I said and slammed the door in his face.
That would have had more impact if the stupid officers weren’t still inside my house.
Kane
“Daddy I think you hurt Rory’s feelings.” Sydney hopped up from her seat onto the counter, chin buried in her hands and frowned up at me.
“I doubt it honey. She’s probably just busy.” As long as she wasn’t around I didn’t give a damn where she was. That woman. Hell thinking about her now, days later, still pissed me off. What kind of adult kept someone else’s child without calling to let them know?
“Nuh-uh. I saw her peeking out the window when we left this morning. And she always leaves after we come inside.” She gave me her best admonishing look, dark brown brows dipped low in defiance. “Tell her you’re sorry.”
Ah hell. Days like this I felt much younger than my forty-two years. “Sydney, you scared the hell out of me!”
“And she saved me. Cooked me dinner and did my hair!” She looked so much like her mother with that ski-jump nose, wide mouth and freckles. “She was nice to me.”
Yeah, I could admit that was true. It had been kind of her to let Sydney in and cook for her while keeping her entertained. But dammit I hadn’t been that scared since her mother had woken up one day to a phone call that one of her friends was having yet another party. That day on the lake. She’d crawled out of bed, showered, dressed and left. All without a thought to our ten-month-old daughter.
A few months later she’d left for good. The last thing I needed was another immature and possibly dangerous woman in my life. “I’m glad she was nice to you, but I think she’s fine.”
“I like her and I don’t care if you don’t.” Arms crossed, she glared at me until I relented.
When had my little girl grown up so much? “You don’t even know her, how can you like her?” What kind of spell had the copper haired vixen cast over my child?
“She’s fun and she talks to me about girl stuff. Oh my god, Daddy you have to see how much nail polish she has! Her sofa is purple and her chair is dark green because she says colors make life more interesting. Her spaghetti is the best and she fixed my curls!”
“Is that all?” Apparently, Sydney was smitten with our neighbor.
“Rory planted all the pretty flowers in the yard herself!” And apparently the woman could do no wrong.
Sydney had become very bossy over the past couple of years, so I knew she would badger me until I made things right. “Okay fine. I’ll apologize.” Not that I had anything to apologize for, but living with a feisty little girl had taught me the importance of picking my battles.
“Yay! Go now Daddy! Then maybe we can do our nails together.” She pushed at my arm trying to force me out the door and right into the good graces of our new neighbor. “Go!”
I glanced at the clock above the stove and groaned. “No can do kiddo. I have a consultation in an hour.”
She groaned and rolled her eyes. “Fine. Is Amy coming?”
The sitter should have been here already, but it was clear that I needed to find someone more reliable than a nineteen-year-old with a ring through her lip.
“I hope so.”
She rolled her eyes again. “Better apologize to Rory soon,” she mumbled and hopped from the counter. “I’m going to read Daddy. Talk to her!”
I shook my head at how mature she sounded, already old enough to read for leisure. My little girl was growing up and her attachment to the neighbor proved she needed some female influence. With my parents on the other side of the country in New York and no serious relationship since Tracy, she was hungry for female attention. In the year since we moved to Portland there had been no females around to give it to her.
Two hours. That’s how long it took before I broke down and went in search of our long-legged neighbor. I found her on our shared back porch, sitting on the swing with those long, tanned legs pushing off the rail. Her legs were those of a runner, lean and toned, but smooth and feminine, especially in the blue-green dress she wore.
“Just the woman I was looking for.”
“You must have the wrong address.” Jade eyes looked up at me hesitantly. They were big and almond shaped, nearly dwarfing her face.
She was a smart ass. I hated that. “I’m quite sure I don’t.”
“Say what you have to say Sydney’s father.”
Ah shit. “I’m Kane Royal.” I extended my hand, ignoring the sting of connection when our palms touched.
“Rory, but you can call me Aurora.” She set a stack of paper and a red pen to the side. “What do you need, Doctor?”
If there was a hell I just earned myself a spot, because hearing her call me doctor in that thick, husky voice sent a jolt of lightning straight to my cock. “What are your plans this evening?”
“That’s none of your business.”
I mentally growled at her non-answer. “My babysitter hasn’t called and I really need to get to work.” I held my breath while her gaze raked me over so thoroughly I was pretty sure I would need a cold shower before leaving for the hospital. “Well?”
“Send Syd over.” That was it, just three little words and she turned back to her stack of papers. Dismissing me.
“I have a few rules to go over with you first.”
“For crying out loud, Doctor I’m trying to work here.” She gestured to her papers, green eyes big and wide.
“What are you working on?”
“My thesis.”
That didn’t make sense. “Really?”
“Yes, really. Do I look too dumb for a master’s degree?”
“Too young,” I clarified because I thought she might be flighty, but not necessarily dumb.
“Graduated high school early, skipped summers and here I am. Now what about these rules?”
“I think we should talk when you’re note quite so distracted.”
“Nope you’ve already stolen my concentration and now you have all of my attention. Use it.”
Did she have to make everything sound so dirty? I cleared my throat and tried to avoid looking down the dip in her dress that offered me a peek at royal blue lace.
“Bedtime is at nine. No soda or sugar after eight and-,”
“No smoking and no fun of any kind. No television, no nothing. That about it?”
Yeah. “No.”
“Right.” She stood and bent to gather her papers giving me a glorious view of her heart shaped ass, smooth tanned legs and just a hint of a shadow that told me she wore blue panties too. “No refined sugars. No R-rated entertainment and early to bed. Got it,” she said on a breathless smile as she turned back to me.
“Sounds good.”
“Good.” She walked towards me and the door but my brain had short-circuited and I didn’t move in time.
“Great.” Finally, I stepped aside and she laughed as she pushed the door open.
“Glad we’ve cleared that up.”
Yeah I was glad too, but instead of saying something and risk sounding like an idiot, I turned tail and fled into my house.
I wasn’t a coward, but I hadn’t been prepared for the way lust and need smacked me in the gut.
I knew this situation couldn’t stay the way it was without something giving. Over the past few days Rory had been happy to help out with Sydney when she could, and I appreciated it. More than I could possibly say. But the sight that greeted me when I arrived home earlier tha
n expected was exactly why I needed to get a new sitter.
Pronto.
Sydney knelt in the grass beside Rory who looked like a wet dream in so tiny they barely counted denim shorts and a white tank that I was sure when she turned, would reveal voluptuous tits with nipples aching to be tasted. What made it worse was that Sydney wore a very similar outfit which fucked with my head in a big way. Both females were elbow deep in soil, talking and laughing quietly like they’d been doing this together for years. As much as I wanted that for my daughter, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Rory was all wrong.
But she’s here, a voice whispered as though that were enough. Considering today was the last day of school, it just might be if I couldn’t find Amy or a suitable replacement. More suitable than the one currently shaking her delectable ass in my face.
“Daddy!” Sydney spotted me first, dropping her pink plastic garden tool and running full speed in my direction. “I’m helping Rory plant flowers,” she held up her hands wiggling her fingers so I could see all the dirt caked on them and under her nails. “She says its relaxing.”
Another thing I’ve had to deal with for the past week was Sydney quoting Rory when it came to everything from healthy eating, to reading and even beauty tips. Lately it was “Rory said this,” or “Rory said that.” It was enough to make a sane man crazy and I was on edge.
“How was your day honey?”
“Good. School is done and I’m ready for summer fun!” She punched the air, grinning up at me expectantly. “How was your day Daddy?”
I smiled because in some ways she was so grownup it killed me. “Good. Hectic. I delivered two babies and two sets of twins today.” I’d ran around the obstetrics department all damn day from one birthing room to the next before the ending the day in the OR to perform a C-section. “Want to talk about it over pizza?”
Her little head bobbed up and down, curls still wild, but looking more tamed with female influence in her life. “Can Rory come too? We’re doing our nails after we finish.”
Stranded: A Mountain Man Romance Page 68