Playing for Keeps

by Hill, Jamie

  "Here we are." Rob pulled into the TLC parking lot, and made no move to get out.

  "Rob, I need to talk to you for one more minute, please."

  He stared straight ahead.

  "Please," Maddie implored him. "You came all this way. I just need another minute from you."

  He finally nodded and helped Sophie out. They walked to Maddie's room and she greeted Sandy. "Hey, could you keep Sophie here for a couple of minutes? Rob and I need to talk."

  "Of course." Sandy took Sophie's hand. "The kids are sleeping, but we could look at some books if you like."

  "Sure." Sophie went with Sandy.

  "I'll be right back, Soph," Rob told his daughter.

  Maddie took him by the hand and led him to the lounge. Fortunately, there was no one there. She shut the door for privacy and turned to face him. "What was that all about? Your mood went from sixty to zero in about ten seconds."

  He reached for her left hand and rubbed his thumb over her wedding ring. "It's too late. I can't believe I let you slip away from me a second time. I am so stupid!"

  Maddie looked at her hand and realized he thought she was married. A big smile crossed her face. She pulled him to her and kissed him gently.

  He resisted for a moment, before returning the kiss.

  Maddie pressed her body against his.

  Rob caught himself and pushed away. "I can't do this. I won't do this to some other guy. You said you were happy. I can't come in here and mess that up for you."

  "It's okay." She rubbed her hand over his face. "It's really okay."

  "But—"

  Maddie smiled. "I do have someone new in my life. He's the most wonderful guy in the world, and he makes me very happy. Come on, I want you to meet him." She pulled Rob by the hand into the hall.

  "He's here?" Rob got a horrified expression on his face.

  "Yeah." Maddie smiled as she pulled Rob along. "He's right in here." She opened the door to the infant room and saw Raul standing there talking to another worker.

  "Hey Mad," he said congenially.

  "Hi Raul."

  Rob whispered, "Is that him?"

  "No." Maddie led Rob to a crib and stopped by the side. "This is him." She scooped the baby up. "Robert Cooper, I'd like you to meet Samuel Robert Cooper. Sam was born April ninth."

  Rob's eyes widened and he looked from Maddie to the baby and back again. "What? How? When?"

  Maddie smiled as she rocked the sleeping baby back and forth in her arms. She looked up at Rob. "The when part is easy. Do you remember the night of Sophie's birthday party?"

  Rob shut his eyes for a second. "I've tried to forget that night."

  She leaned into Rob and whispered, "That's not all you forgot."

  He opened his eyes and looked at her.

  She smiled and nodded.

  He looked down at the baby in her arms and finally allowed a smile to come to his lips. "You have a son?"

  "We have a son," she corrected, and placed Sam gently into Rob's arms. "I named him Sam. I hope you like it."

  "Like it?" he whispered in disbelief, and studied the baby's face. "I love it. I love him! Look at him! He's beautiful!"

  Maddie leaned on Rob's arm and looked at Sam. "Yeah, he is. I think he looks a lot like you, and Sophie too."

  "And you." Rob looked at her, and a look of anger mixed with anguish crossed his face. "Were you ever going to tell me?"

  "Of course." She continued to smile, still leaning against him. "I gave him your name, didn't I? But I couldn't decide the right time to do it. I found out I was pregnant the day you told me you were going back to Dionne. The timing didn't seem quite right. I've been debating ever since, when I should tell you. Frankly, I was afraid to get into a confrontation with you and Dionne on one side and me on the other. I didn't think I was strong enough for that, her being a lawyer and all. I wasn't sure what would happen. I barely survived losing you. Losing Sam would kill me."

  Rob looked from Sam's face to Maddie's. "I would never do that to you."

  She shrugged. "I wasn't sure what you would do, especially if you were under Dionne's influence. I was scared. I wanted to call you, I really did. Especially when I went into labor. I was really scared then."

  "I'm so sorry you had to go through it alone." Rob held Sam to him with one arm and touched Maddie's face briefly with his free hand.

  "I've been lonely," she admitted. "I thought when the baby came, it might get better, but it's a different kind of lonely. I missed you so much."

  He nodded. "I've been miserable. I went back to my house and my old job, but nothing was good for me anymore. I missed you, desperately. You were right. I walked away from the best thing I ever had. And I regret it every day."

  Maddie chuckled. "I had quite an ego to say that. I promise you, my ego has been properly deflated and put in check."

  Sam squirmed and Rob looked at him. "Oh Jesus, we have some decisions to make, don't we?"

  Maddie nodded. "Would you like to go to my place and talk? I'm sure I can leave."

  He smiled. "Yes, I would. But I don't want to put this baby down."

  She squeezed Rob's arm. "I'll gather up his things." She got Sam's car seat and diaper bag, and signed him out. They walked back to Maddie's room and Sophie ran over to them.

  "Look at the baby! He's so cute!"

  "Isn't he?" Rob held Sam so Sophie could see him.

  Maddie smiled at them. She said to Rob, "Would you like to strap him in his car seat? Then you can carry the seat, I promise."

  He grinned.

  She showed him how to fasten Sam in.

  Rob stood, but before picking up the baby asked Sandy, "Where is that director lady?"

  "I can get her." Sandy exchanged glances with Maddie, who shrugged. She left and returned quickly with Suzie.

  "Oh, Mr. Cooper, you're back. Did you have a question?"

  "Yes, Ma'am. Do you have substitutes here, for when Maddie or someone is missing?"

  "Of course. We have well trained substitutes to take very good care of the children."

  "Great! Because we're taking Maddie, and I'm not sure when, or if, she's coming back. We've got some plans to make."

  Maddie was stunned.

  "If that's okay with you," he added, looking at her.

  "Oh yeah, it's very okay!" She threw her arms around him and they kissed.

  "Yay!" Sophie hopped up and down. "We're taking Maddie!"

  "Shhh!" Maddie pulled back and told Sophie. "The children are sleeping."

  "It's okay." Sandy grinned and approached Maddie. "Yay!" She gave her a hug, then Suzie did the same.

  Suzie looked from Maddie to Sandy and asked, "So is this the hunting accident?"

  They both nodded and laughed.

  Rob looked confused. "What?"

  Maddie smiled at him and slipped the wedding band off her finger. "Nothing. Let's just say you died a tragic death."

  He pulled the ring from her hand and shoved it in his jeans pocket. "I would never have given you such a crappy ring."

  Maddie patted his chest. "When I bought this one, you weren't offering, if you recall."

  "Oh shoot, that's right. Guess I'd better shut up." He ran a hand over her cheek, and pulled her closer to him.

  Sam whimpered, and Rob let go of Maddie quickly to pick the baby's car seat up. "Hey tiny guy. It's okay."

  Maddie teased, "Uh huh. I see how it's going to be."

  "Are we taking that baby with us?" Sophie blinked.

  Rob and Maddie exchanged glances. He said, "Yeah, Soph, we are. We'll explain it all once we get to Maddie's house, okay?" He looked at Maddie. "Want to gather up your things?"

  "Oh, yeah." She shoved the few things she had into Sam's diaper bag, and said her goodbyes to Sandy and Suzie. They hugged, happy tears falling all around.

  "Keep in touch, okay?" Sandy said.

  "Definitely, I will. Thank you, so much for everything, both of you."

  They walked out to the parking lot, and Rob loo
ked around. "Do you have a different car?"

  "Nope, same one. We walked here this the morning."

  "Good," Rob looked over their things, and stuffed what he could in the back of the truck. "Well, if we're going to have to squeeze again, I get to pick who I'm sitting next to."

  "Pick me, pick me," Maddie whispered, and Rob laughed as he buckled Sophie in the center and Sam on the end.

  "That right?" he asked Maddie.

  "You got it." She wiggled the seat, found it secure, and closed the door to the truck.

  He led her around to his door and stopped to kiss her before he opened it. "I missed this."

  "Me too." She slipped her arms around his neck, and pressed into him firmly.

  "I missed you." He pressed back against her.

  "Me too," she whispered, kissed him, and sighed.

  He gave her a hand up into the truck, and she squeezed into her little spot.

  "God, we're going to have to get a minivan or something, aren't we?" he muttered.

  "How about an SUV?" she suggested.

  His eyes lit up. "Yeah, I could do that." He started the truck, and drove.

  Maddie directed him to her house, and he got the kids out while she unlocked the door.

  "You live here, Maddie?" Sophie walked in and looked around.

  "Yep," Maddie dropped her stuff and the diaper bag on a table.

  Sophie looked around and found some pictures on a side table. "Hey, there's a picture of me and daddy!"

  "Of course." Maddie removed Sam from his car seat.

  Rob looked over Sophie's shoulder and smiled. "I remember that. We had fun that day."

  Maddie smiled at him. "We had fun most days."

  "Yes, we did." Rob pulled her into his arms, and kissed the side of her head. "And we will again. Starting today." He kissed her one more time, then looked at his daughter. "Soph, we need to talk to you. Let's sit down."

  Sophie had been nosing around in the hall and called out, "Hey, there's a baby's room!" She walked back into the living room. "Does that baby live here too, Maddie?"

  "Come're, Soph." Rob sat on the couch, and patted the seat next to him. Sophie climbed on the couch, and Maddie sat next to her with Sam in her arms. "Sophie, Maddie is the baby's mommy. His name is Sam."

  "Wow," Sophie looked at Sam, then at Maddie. "Where's his daddy?"

  Maddie smiled at Rob.

  He said softly, "I'm his daddy, munchkin. That makes him your brother."

  "Wow!" Sophie said again, excitedly. "My brother? Really?"

  "Really, truly." Maddie ran her hand over Sophie's hair. "Would you like to hold him?"

  Sophie nodded, and Maddie showed her how to hold the baby properly, supporting his head.

  "Be gentle," Rob advised, and they looked at Sam lovingly.

  "I've got to get a picture of this." Maddie stood up and went for her camera.

  "Have you taken many pictures?"

  "Only a zillion. I thought you might like to see them someday."

  "I would." He nodded, still looking a bit awestruck.

  Maddie took pictures of him and Sophie and Sam, who was starting to fuss.

  "Let me take him, Soph." Rob reached for the baby and tried to comfort him.

  "Sophie, I have bunches of movies for you to watch. Would you like to pick one out?" Maddie opened her video cabinet.

  Sophie's eyes grew large. "Wow!" She looked at her father. "Can I watch one, daddy?"

  He smiled. "Sure. I guess Maddie's going to turn us into movie people. Go ahead."

  Sophie chose Pocahontas, and as Maddie got the DVD player ready, she looked at her father. "If Sam is my brother, shouldn't he live with us?"

  Rob looked at Maddie. "I think he should. I think Sam and Maddie need to move into our house."

  Maddie smiled at him, then at Sophie. "Would that be okay with you?"

  "Sure! But where can Sam sleep?"

  "We can make the office into his room," Rob replied, "and I can start working on plans to enlarge the house."

  Maddie shook her head. "You don't have to enlarge the house. We'll be fine."

  "I've always planned to make it bigger, just haven't had the need. I think now we have the need." He raised his eyebrows at her a couple times.

  Maddie laughed. "Okay, whatever you say. I was thinking maybe you two could stay here tonight, so we can talk and get reacquainted. Then tomorrow, we can think about moving. It's going to be a chore."

  Sam was crying now, and Rob nodded. "That'll be fine. Bo will be okay for one night. What's wrong with this kid, anyway?"

  "He's hungry, Daddy. You do remember babies need to eat?"

  "So how do we do that?" He jiggled Sam up and down, but it didn't help.

  Maddie looked as Sophie, who had settled in to watch her movie. She went to Rob and said, "We do it like this: you hand him to me, and I whip out my boob to feed him."

  "Oh." Rob handed Sam over. "Do I at least get to watch?"

  "Come on." Maddie smiled and went to her bedroom. She propped up her pillows and leaned against them as she began to nurse Sam.

  Rob lay on the bed next to her, and looked on in amazement. "Now that's the prettiest sight I've seen in a long time."

  She chuckled. "You're easy to please."

  He leaned up to plant a kiss on her neck. "I'm getting thirsty."

  Maddie shoved him away gently. "Later, 'gator. The kid gets first dibs."

  Rob lay back down and smiled. "I can live with that." He stared up at the ceiling and finally asked, "How was your pregnancy? Were you sick much?"

  "Right at first, yes. But I never knew how much of that was the baby, and how much was losing you. That made me very sick for quite a while."

  He looked at her with regret in his eyes. "I'm so sorry, Maddie. Can you ever forgive me?"

  She ran a hand through his hair. "As long as you're sure about what you want. I couldn't stand losing you again, Rob. I swear, it almost killed me. Being pregnant with your child was the only thing that kept me going."

  He sat up and faced her, pulling her hand to his lips and kissing it. "I'm very sure about what I want. I made a huge mistake when I let you go, and I've known it for a long time. I need to know that you can forgive me."

  "I already have," she assured him. "I just want to be with you. Nothing else matters anymore."

  "I love you, Maddie. I've loved you since I met you. I know I had trouble committing to you, but that's in the past." He reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a small black box. "I've been carrying this around for a while now, trying to get up the nerve to come after you." He opened the box and showed her a silver engagement ring with a big diamond in the center, surrounded by an intricate rose pattern.

  "Wow." She admired the ring, then chuckled as Sam continued to hungrily suckle at her breast. "Timing's a little weird here, babe."

  "I think it's the perfect time." He ran his hand over Sam's little head. "You have never looked more beautiful than you do right now. I want to marry you and take you and our son home with me. Maybe not in that order."

  Sam stopped eating and Maddie lifted him to her shoulder and patted his back until he burped. "Time to switch sides." She chuckled nervously and moved the baby to her other breast. She tried to cover herself but it was hard while holding Sam.

  Rob reached up and closed her blouse for her. "I've made you uncomfortable. I'm sorry."

  "It's okay." She shook her head. "I just need to be sure you're proposing for the right reasons, and not because of the baby. He can't be the reason we get married—if we do."

  Rob ran his hand over Maddie's face again. "I came here looking for you today. I never imagined, in a million years, what I was going to find. I've been carrying this ring around to give to you, no one else. That was always the plan, baby or no baby. Far as I'm concerned, he's just an added bonus."

  Maddie had to laugh. "Well, since you put it that way." She held out her left hand and wiggled the ring finger.

  He slipped the r
ing on, discovered it was too big, and made a face.

  Maddie squeezed her hand shut and smiled at him. "It's beautiful. I love it."

  "We'll get it sized."

  "Later." She admired her hand. "I want to enjoy it first."

  Rob pulled the hand to his mouth and kissed it again. "I love you, Maddie. Will you marry me?"

  She chuckled. "I've waited a long time to hear those words. You bet I will."

  He leaned in to kiss her lips. "Thank you. Thank you for taking me back. Thank you for forgiving me." He kissed her again. "I love you so much. Are you going to get tired of hearing that?"

  "Nope." She kissed him back. "I've waited so long to hear it; you better say it over and over to me, every day."

  He held her face in his hands. "That's the way I'm going to make love to you, too. Over and over again, every day."

  Maddie grinned and whispered, "You make me wet, just saying those words. It's been a long time."

  He kissed her again then smiled. "It's been an awfully long time. I've been miserable. We are never going to be apart again."

  "Agreed." She kissed him back, and they both looked at the baby.

  "Lucky pup." Rob ran the back of his finger over Sam's head and on to her breast.

  Maddie chuckled to herself.

  "What?"

  "You need to stop doing that. I am very horny."

  "You are? You're not the shy type. You could have taken care of business yourself."

  She laughed. "I don't just want sex, I want you."

  "I want you, too, gorgeous." He snuggled close to her again.

  "I hope you don't mind staying here tonight," Maddie said as she finished feeding Sam. "I just can't think about packing and moving, yet. All I can think about is wrapping my legs around you."

  "It's fine," he assured her. "It's perfect."

  "There's a burp rag on the nightstand, there. Put it over your chest and I'll let you burp him."

  Rob did as she suggested, and she laid the baby on his chest. "Just pat his back gently, like this," Maddie showed him.

  Rob scoffed. "Real men don't need burp rags, do they, boy?"

  Sam burped and a mouthful of milk came back out.

  They chuckled and Maddie said, "You had to ask." She got up, buttoned her blouse and went to the front room to check on Sophie. She came back into the bedroom and told Rob, "Guess who fell asleep?"