by Mia Ross
“Have you gotten any calls about your lost-dog flyers?”
Brian frowned. “Not a single one. I even put an ad in the newspaper, but I haven’t heard anything. Either Riley’s former owner moved away, or they don’t miss him enough to go out looking for him. Whichever it is, I feel bad for the little guy.”
Lindsay gave him a long, suspicious look. “You’re thinking about keeping him, aren’t you?”
“Folks wants puppies, not full-grown dogs. There’s a humane shelter near here, and I know they’d take good care of him, but it’s not the same as belonging to a family.” He blew out a breath. “As great as he is, I hate the thought of him being stuck there for months, getting excited when people come through, and then not being adopted. At least if he stays with me, I can bring him to work so he’s not alone all day. As long as you don’t mind him hanging out in the office with you.”
“He’s very well behaved, and I like having him around, so it’s not a problem for me.” She rewarded him with an approving smile. “You look all rugged and tough, but underneath all that swagger, you’re just a big ol’ softy.”
“Yeah, well, don’t spread that around. I’ve got a reputation to protect.”
“No problem. Even if I knew anyone I’d want to tell, they probably wouldn’t believe me.” Leaning back in her chair, Lindsay’s eyes roamed around the decorated walls with obvious approval. “Sharon was right about what a fabulous job they did in here. Between the streamers, the lights and that huge mirrored ball spinning around, it reminds me of when we went to the prom in high school.”
“I was just thinking the same thing,” Brian confessed with a grin. Standing in front of her, he grinned and held out his hand. “So, Holland—you wanna dance?”
From the exuberant laugh she let out, he knew that she recognized the line from the night she’d been reminiscing about. Resting her hands on her rounded stomach, she cautioned, “I’m afraid you won’t be able to get as close to me as you did back then.”
Quite honestly, Brian thought that was probably for the best. His feelings for Lindsay had always been complicated, and now they seemed to be more tangled up than ever. One minute, he had no trouble viewing her as strictly his business partner, and the next he caught himself wondering if there might be a chance for something more between them.
One thing was still the same, though. Lindsay Holland came loaded down with a lot of baggage, and with everything he had going on these days, he wasn’t sure that he was in a position to drop everything he’d been juggling and shoulder her burdens along with his own.
So that left him going one step forward, one step back. Drawn to her in a way he still didn’t comprehend, leery of making a commitment to her and her baby that he might not be able to keep. Basically, he kept ending up at the same place he’d been in when he started. It was frustrating, to say the least.
But for now, he shoved all that uncertainty aside and focused on giving the mom-to-be some much-needed fun. “That’s okay. We’ll figure it out.”
For some reason, she tilted her head in the pose that always made him suspect that she saw more of him than the average person did. Intelligence sparked in those incredible blue eyes, and she slowly rose to join him in a corner of the polished floor. He held her loosely in his arms, keeping her at a nice, respectable distance.
It was still close enough for him to catch the scent of her perfume, and he let out a mental groan. A light spray of something floral, it made him think of picnics on summer days, in spite of the fact that it was about ten degrees and there was four feet of snow piled up outside.
“Brian?”
Yanking his attention back to the gorgeous woman in front of him, he forced a casual expression. “Yeah?”
“Were you referring to something besides dancing earlier?”
Busted. He should have known better than to suggest something that would put them in such close contact with each other. She read him too well for him to successfully evade her for long. “When?”
“When you mentioned us figuring out how to dance. You had a strange look on your face, and I was wondering if you meant it another way.”
His mind raced for a plausible way to explain the reaction even he didn’t understand. When it came up empty, he punted. “What other way is there?”
“I don’t know,” she shot back, temper glittering in her eyes. “That’s why I asked. Forget I said anything.”
She didn’t storm off, but he could feel her pulling away from him, as if she was getting ready to bolt as soon as the song ended. Brian felt terrible for spoiling her one evening out in months, and he tucked his pride away to apologize.
“Lindsay, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you mad, but I don’t know how to answer your question.”
“It was simple enough,” she pointed out curtly. “Yes or no would’ve done it.”
The DJ started another song, and she was still glaring up at him instead of storming off the way he’d expected. He took that as a good sign. Some of the tension he’d felt in her had eased, and he drew her as close as he dared. A variety of explanations tumbled through his mind, but in the end he wisely chose the one that he felt would cause them both the least amount of trouble.
“Mostly, I was thinking about how we’ve learned to do things together since you started working at the forge. We even figured out how to pull together this thing,” he added, motioning at the couples around them. “We make a pretty good team.”
She studied him with the skeptical look he’d come to expect whenever he caught this very guarded woman by surprise. “You sound like you weren’t expecting that.”
“I wasn’t,” he admitted, happily veering away from what could have been a prickly—and far too personal—conversation. “We’re both so stubborn, I wasn’t sure how it’d go when we disagreed.”
“Which is most of the time,” she pointed out with a smirk. “If you’d just do what I tell you to, there’d be a lot less arguing.”
“Aw, what fun would that be?”
She laughed, but the next moment, she grew pensive. “How is it that no matter what’s going on in my messed-up life, you can always make me laugh?”
“It’s a gift,” he replied smoothly, hoping to coax a smile from her. When she looked down in an obvious attempt to avoid him, he ducked his head for a closer look. The tears shimmering on her cheeks washed away his amusement, and he felt his grip on her tighten all on its own. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she answered in a watery voice, wiping away the tears. Taking a long breath, she straightened to meet his gaze in the direct way he’d always admired. “Really, nothing. Last night, I cried at a puppy food commercial. Stupid, right?”
“Isn’t being extra emotional part of the mom-to-be package?”
“I guess.”
“Then it’s not stupid. I’m just glad there’s nothing seriously wrong. The women’s clinic is really nice, but I’m not keen on going back there anytime soon.”
His comment earned him another head tilt, and he braced himself for more surprises. This woman had a knack for doing that to him, and he’d learned to expect the unexpected from her.
“Brian, I know it’s asking a lot,” she began in a hesitant tone that nearly broke his heart. Lindsay had become so accustomed to not relying on anyone, he could only imagine how terrifying it was to face the birth of her child on her own.
“You can ask me anything, Lindsay. If I can do it, I will.”
This time, it was gratitude that flooded those amazing blue eyes. “You’re so wonderful to me. I don’t know what I did to deserve someone like you.”
“You don’t have to do anything,” he assured her gently, brushing a stray lock of curls back over her shoulder. “You never did.”
He hadn’t meant to say those last few words out loud, and he cringed inwardly, waiting to see how she’d react. Neith
er of them had expressed the least interest in revisiting the relationship they once had, and he wasn’t about to suggest it now. The future was already far too unsettled.
“You’re the sweetest, most generous guy I’ve ever met,” she said, beaming up at him like he was Superman. “I was hoping that when it comes time to drive to the hospital, you’d be the one to take me. I know they’ll send an ambulance, but I’m probably going to be terrified, and it would be so nice to have you there.”
“Of course I will.”
“You don’t have to be in the delivery room or anything,” she clarified hastily. “You don’t even have to wait around if you don’t want to. This isn’t your baby, so I’ll understand if you’d rather not be involved that way.”
Brian understood just how difficult it was for her to ask anyone for help. He also knew that she fully expected to be disappointed by—well, everyone. Pulling a serious face, he asked, “So you want me to drop you at the front desk like a hamper full of laundry and then drive home?”
“I—” Her astonished look quickly morphed into laughter, which had been his intent. “When you say it like that, it sounds pretty ridiculous.”
“Good, ’cause it is. If you don’t want me in the delivery room, that’s fine. But I’ll be waiting around, so if you change your mind, just send them out for me. I’ll be there.”
“Even if it takes all night?”
“Even if.” Gently grasping her shoulders, he made sure he had her full attention. “You’re not alone in this, Lindsay. My family and I will all be here to support you. Both of you.”
Her chin began trembling, and she took a moment to compose herself before gazing up at him with grateful eyes. “Thank you.”
“Anytime.”
“I’m going to hold you to that,” she retorted, making it sound an awful lot like a threat.
“Yeah,” he teased, giving her a quick hug. “I figured you would.”
Chapter Nine
It had been quite the week.
Lindsay snuggled down in the soft bed early Sunday morning, cozy and warm under the quilt that Great-grandma Calhoun had made ages ago. Outside the windows she could see that last night’s blizzard had finally moved on, and the sky was a clear, sunny blue. The frost on the panes told her it was still pretty cold out there, though, and she considered following her usual sleep-in approach to Sundays.
She was in the final month of her pregnancy, and from her expectant mother book she knew that her daughter was growing at a crazy rate. Putting on weight, getting ready to come out and greet the world.
For the millionth time, she acknowledged that she had very limited exposure to children in general. Sam and Holly’s son, Chase, was a great kid, and she enjoyed spending time with him, but she had no idea what it took to raise a child. Philosophically, she was prepared to do whatever was necessary to give her own little one a good life, but in truth she had no clue what that meant.
A tendril of doubt slithered around her like an invisible python, making it hard for her to breathe. Panic attack, she told herself sternly, raising herself to a partial sitting position to take deep breaths and calm her racing heart.
Breathe in, breathe out, she silently coached herself, relieved when the wave of terror receded enough for her to relax a bit. The commotion had apparently woken the baby, who gave her a hearty kick that knocked the air out of her lungs. No matter what position she tried, the squirming continued, so she finally threw off the covers and stood up. Massaging her stomach to calm her fractious passenger, she decided a little motherly reassurance was in order.
“I know it’s tough, being all cramped in there. We’re just going to have to make the best of it.” The sound of her voice seemed to be helping, so she kept going. “It’s not much longer now, and you’ll finally be here. I can’t wait to hold you, see how big and strong you’ve gotten. Those sonogram pictures are nice, but it’s not the same as seeing you for myself.”
There was a soft knock on the door, and she opened it to find Ellie in the hallway. “Is everything all right, dear?”
“Oh, fine. Just chatting with the baby, the way they recommend in my book,” she explained, hoping she didn’t sound like a complete loon.
“I’ve heard that, too. Just so you know, they like the sound of their mother’s voice, no matter how old they get.”
“That’s good to know.”
Smiling, Ellie patted her arm in a reassuring gesture. “I’ve no doubt you’ll do just fine, once you get the hang of mothering.”
“I hope so.”
“The family’s coming over for lunch after church. You’re welcome to join us if you feel up to it.”
“I knew I smelled something amazing coming from the kitchen,” Lindsay commented with a smile. “I’d love to see everyone.”
“Wonderful! I’ll be driving over to the chapel in a little while. Can I get you anything before I leave?”
“No, but thank you.” An idea popped into her head, and it felt so right, she decided to go with it. “Could I go to church with you?”
Ellie beamed as if she’d suggested they take a whirlwind trip to Paris. “Of course, you can. I’d love to have the company.”
“Company?” Lindsay repeated, laughing. “You make it sound like you’d be sitting in the pew all by yourself if I wasn’t with you. Your whole family will be there.”
“Yes, but not you.” Grasping her arms, Ellie pulled her into a warm hug, then held her out for another approving smile. “I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but I’ve been praying that you’d decide to come with me one of these Sundays. I’m thrilled that it’s today.”
The feelings that seemed to be bubbling way too close to the surface lately threatened to swamp her in an embarrassing rush of tears. Doing that to Brian at the dance had been bad enough. She didn’t want to put his lovely grandmother through it, too. Swallowing hard, she steadied her voice before speaking. “Ellie, you’ve been so incredible through all this. Giving me a place to stay, making such great meals, praying for me. How can I ever thank you?”
“By having a beautiful, healthy child, and raising her to be the kind of person this world needs more of. And being happy yourself,” she added with a sage look that was comforting and cautioning all at once. “Trust me, if you have those, you’ll have a good life.”
Because it was Ellie, Lindsay accepted the advice without reservation. “I’ll try.”
“Good for you. Now, I’ll go whip us up some breakfast while you get ready.”
After another quick hug, she left Lindsay in the upstairs hallway. While she showered and picked out one of the nicer dresses that Holly had loaned her, it struck her that since coming back to Liberty Creek, she’d been shown more affection than she’d gotten in months. She rarely thought of Jeff anymore, and now it made sense why.
He hadn’t loved her. He’d wanted her with him, and he’d always relished showing her off to his friends. But now she understood that wasn’t love. It was possession. Immature and boastful, Jeff had shown her a great time for a while, but in the long run, he’d proven that he couldn’t be trusted when things got tough.
Not like Brian, she thought with a smile in the mirror. Time and again, he’d come to her rescue, in big ways and little ones. Always there, standing behind her in case she needed him. The forge was his business, but he allowed her to run the office and website her own way, trusting her to do what was best for his company. On a personal note, his gallant offer to hold her hand throughout her upcoming labor still amazed her, because she couldn’t imagine any other guy she’d known doing the same.
Somehow, he’d found a way to forgive her for the awful way she’d treated him in the past and become her friend. No matter what happened to her in the future, she’d never forget what he did to help her when she was at her most vulnerable.
Following a light breakfast, she and Ellie d
rove through a smattering of flurries to church. Lindsay hadn’t been there since the town meeting about the bridge, and while that visit had turned out well enough, for some reason she felt nervous now. Then she saw Brian’s four-by-four parked in the lot, and her anxiety eased a bit. If anyone looked askance at a single pregnant woman showing up for worship, she was confident that the no-nonsense owner of Liberty Creek Forge would set them straight.
The Calhoun crew was sitting together in a pew near the center of the chapel, chatting with people around them while they waited for the service to start. Brian glanced toward the doorway, and his face broke into a broad grin when he saw her. He stood as she and Ellie approached, and Lindsay couldn’t help smiling back as he and Sam moved into the aisle to let them in.
“Such a gentleman,” she teased him, taking her seat next to Holly.
“Showing off for you,” his sister-in-law murmured, glancing over to where he and Sam were talking in construction terms. Something about sistering beams and building pony walls, which Lindsay didn’t begin to understand.
“I can’t imagine why,” she confided, although she had to admit the idea appealed to her more than it should have.
“Don’t get me wrong—Brian’s a terrific guy,” Holly clarified in a hushed tone. “But once he came back from Portsmouth, he didn’t seem interested in anything other than getting the ironworks up and running again. Until you got here.”
She added a knowing look, and Lindsay couldn’t keep back a laugh. “I think I follow you, but you’ve got it wrong. Brian’s been a good friend and a great boss, but that’s it. We have way too much history to be anything more.”
“You sound unhappy about that.”
Truthfully, Lindsay wasn’t sure how she felt about it. While she understood the reasons for them to remain at a distance from each other, there was a tiny part of her that wished it could be different. Shrugging, she said, “It is what it is. You know?”
“Yes, I do. So, how are you and your little one doing these days?”