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  “What is it?” he asked. And then it came to him. There was only one thing that could get this sort of a reaction from her. “Is it one of the kids?” he wanted to know.

  Brianna held her hand up, asking for silence as she continued listening to the voice on the other end of the line.

  “All right, I’ll be right there,” she finally said, then hung up the phone.

  “What is it?” Connor asked her the second that she ended the call.

  “Axel threw up.” He’d been so eager to go, even more so than his sister. And now she had to go and bring him home. She felt awful for the poor kid.

  “Flu?” Connor asked, saying the first thing that occurred to him.

  He tried to remember if flu season was over yet. He vaguely remembered hearing something on the radio during one of his drives here, but couldn’t recall anything beyond that.

  “Candy,” Brianna answered. When Connor looked at her, confused, she explained. “Seems that besides dinner, my son decided to stuff himself with as much candy and as many snacks as he could get his hands on. Then they played some kind of game involving spinning and, well, you can imagine the rest.”

  “Poor kid,” Connor commented.

  “Poor kid?” she echoed as she walked into the living room where they’d both left their clothes. She knew why she felt that way, but what had prompted Connor to say that?

  “Well, sure,” he told her, collecting his clothing and quickly getting dressed. “This isn’t the way he would have wanted to remember his first night away from home. It’s kind of embarrassing for him.”

  She fully understood that, but as Axel’s mother, she had a job to do. “That’s nothing compared to the lecture he’s going to get. He knows he’s not supposed to stuff himself with that kind of garbage, especially not before bedtime.”

  “That’s probably why he did it,” Connor pointed out. “Because you weren’t there to police him. Face it, you have a typical boy on your hands.”

  “Right now, I’d welcome him being a little less typical,” Brianna answered, pulling on her jeans.

  “This is harmless. Go easy on him,” Connor advised. She detected a note of sympathy in his voice. “Right now, the guy’s pretty miserable and he feels bad about having to come home.”

  She relented. She hadn’t been all that hell-bent to deliver that lecture anyway. “Maybe you’re right,” Brianna agreed.

  Finding her purse, she began hunting through it for her car keys.

  Connor put his hand out for the keys. “I’ll drive,” he offered.

  It took her a moment for his words to register. “What?”

  “Give me the address and I’ll drive you,” Connor told her. “We’ll use your car because you have their car seats,” he added.

  He seemed to have thought this all out, Brianna realized. That he had really surprised her. “You’re not going home?” she asked.

  “I figure that Axel’s going to need a guy in his corner. I’m sure Ava’s probably filling in for you right now, reading him the riot act for doing something she no doubt considers dumb. With both of you there, the poor guy’ll feel outnumbered. I just thought I’d offer him a little moral support.”

  Then, as if he knew what she was thinking, Connor added, “It’s still early. Any other time, we might still be working on those names Charlotte had you looking for.”

  He knew she was worried about the way this looked, she thought. But he was right. On all counts. She was just being self-conscious. The kids were too young to think that anything was going on between them.

  Don’t get used to this.

  If she did, it would be all too easy for her to start leaning on him. Depending on him.

  And looking forward to his being there beside her in bed.

  You know that’s not how this is all going to play out, she silently insisted. The man’s here today. He’s not making any commitments about tomorrow.

  Brianna took a breath, looking at him. “You sure you want to do this?”

  Connor didn’t answer her question, not directly. Instead, all he said was, “Let’s go,” and led the way out of her house to her car.

  Brianna followed, focused on getting to her son.

  * * *

  “I’m really sorry about this,” Brianna said, wholeheartedly apologizing to Beth Wilson, the mother who had called her.

  “Don’t worry about it,” Beth told her, waving away the apology. She seemed to genuinely mean the words. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have put out all those snacks, but this was the first sleepover the kids have ever had and Joey kept saying that Axel and Ava liked all these different things.” She smiled ruefully at her mistake. “I guess I didn’t realize that he was eating so much.” She looked down at Axel and it was obvious that she really was sorry. “Do you feel any better?”

  Axel shook his head. He just looked really miserable, like he never wanted to see another piece of chocolate again.

  Connor stooped down and scooped the boy up in his arms. Axel put his head against Connor’s shoulder. “You’ll feel better in the morning, big guy,” Connor promised.

  The woman hosting the children’s slumber party looked at Connor with unabashed appreciation, her eyes traveling up and down the length of him.

  “You’re not their father, are you?” she asked.

  Brianna felt that it was time to step in and she placed herself between Beth and Connor as he held her little boy.

  “This is Connor Fortunado, a client,” she told the other mother. “We were working on some files when you called about Axel’s mishap.”

  “Working,” Beth repeated, drawing the single word out with a wide smile. “I see.” Then, touching Axel’s arm, the woman said, “I hope you feel better, dear. We’ll have you both back when you’ve recovered from this,” she promised the little boy, looking at Ava, as well.

  “Can’t he stay, Mom?” Joey asked. Six months older than his friend, he was clearly unhappy to have the evening end so abruptly.

  “Not tonight, I’m afraid, honey,” Beth told him. She walked the foursome to the front door. Joey and his sister, Debbie, trailed after them. “It was nice meeting you, Mr. Fortunado,” Beth made a point of saying to Connor.

  Brianna caught the interested, friendly note in the woman’s voice. She couldn’t really blame her, Brianna supposed. Connor was certainly a great deal more handsome than the average man.

  “Again, I’m sorry about this,” Brianna apologized one last time for her son.

  Beth waved her hand, although her attention was still partially divided. “Don’t give it another thought. Bye.” Then she added almost wistfully, “Enjoy the rest of your evening.”

  “You know what she’s thinking,” Brianna said to Connor in a low voice as they opened the car doors.

  Even so, Ava managed to overhear her. “What’s she thinking, Mama?” the little girl asked.

  “That she’s sorry the two of you had to leave so early,” Connor told her, saving Brianna from having to come up with an answer.

  “I didn’t have to leave,” Ava informed them with a pout. “I didn’t throw up,” she added almost accusingly. “Axel did.”

  Normally Axel would have spoken up in his own defense at this point. Most likely he would have offered up a denial or come up with something to throw back in his sister’s face. But this time, all the boy did was moan.

  “You still feeling sick, big guy?” Connor asked sympathetically. “Do you think you’re going to throw up again?”

  The miserable look on the little boy’s pale, freckled face told Connor that the answer was a definite yes.

  “Tell you what, why don’t I sit in the back with you to make sure you don’t wind up throwing up on your sister?” Connor suggested.

  Both of the car seats were in the back. He figured he’d just sit between them.

&nbs
p; Whoa, Connor thought. What was he doing? He was getting in way too deep here with these kids. As soon as Brianna got them home, he needed to put on the skids. Otherwise, there would be no getting out and he could just kiss his carefree life goodbye. Permanently.

  The idea of her brother throwing up on her horrified Ava. “I don’t wanna sit with Axel!” she wailed indignantly.

  “You won’t be,” Connor assured her. “You’ll be next to me. I’ll be sitting between you and your brother. If he starts to throw up again, I’ll turn his head away so that it’ll land on this old blanket.” He pointed to the blanket he’d folded up and tucked against the door next to the boy.

  Ava walked over to the blanket he’d indicated. “Oh.” Satisfied that she would be out of the line of fire, she nodded. “Okay,” she agreed, circling back to her side of the vehicle. She waited for Connor to put her into her car seat.

  “Here’re your keys back.” He offered them to Brianna, then heard himself saying, “I’ll get the kids into their seats.”

  He had to stop doing that, he thought. But then, this was just for a little while longer. And then he’d be gone, right?

  About to tell him that she would take care of strapping her children in, Brianna stopped and let Connor take over.

  He’d be gone soon enough and she might as well enjoy this now, while it lasted.

  He was right to insist on coming, Brianna thought, despite the fact that his presence had given Beth Wilson something to think about and most likely to talk about. There was really no way she could have handled Axel in his present condition and still driven the children home. Ava would have voiced her displeasure in a high, loud voice all the way home.

  This was all a lot easier with Connor, she thought, finally getting in on the driver’s side.

  Everything was a lot easier with Connor around.

  You have to stop doing that. This is temporary. Just temporary. If she allowed herself to get used to this, it was going to be twice as hard on her when he left. And he would leave. She just needed to remember that.

  “Everything all right, Bri?” Connor asked, breaking into her thoughts. “You haven’t started the car,” he pointed out.

  Bri. He called her Bri. As if they were a couple. Her heart melted.

  Stop that! she silently upbraided herself.

  “As fine as it can be with one nauseous little boy in the backseat,” she answered.

  “I’m sorry, Mommy,” Axel bleated.

  Her heart went out to him. “You’ll feel better soon. But just remember how you feel the next time you want to eat everything in sight,” she told him.

  “I will,” Axel said meekly.

  This time, Brianna started up the car.

  Chapter Fourteen

  The minute Brianna parked her car in her driveway, Connor got out and came around to Axel’s car seat. Undoing the restraints, he was careful to gently pick the boy up and take him into his arms.

  Walking behind Brianna, who had her daughter by the hand, Connor carried Axel to the room the boy shared with his sister. After helping Axel wash his face and hands and changing him into his pajamas, Connor asked him, “Which is your bed?”

  “He sleeps in the top bunk,” Ava announced, coming back into the bedroom once Connor walked back in with her brother.

  There was a problem with that tonight, Connor thought. He exchanged looks with Brianna. “And the bottom bunk is yours?” he asked the little girl.

  “Uh-huh.” Ave bobbed her head up and down, confirming her response.

  “How about, just for tonight, you let your brother have the bottom bunk?” Connor suggested.

  “But why?” Ava wanted to know, her eyes widening.

  “If he feels sick again during the night, Axel will be able to get to the bathroom faster if he’s in the bottom bunk. Besides, you don’t want to have him suddenly throw up while he’s up there, do you? It could get pretty messy down here for you,” Connor warned, eyeing her closely.

  He felt he had made a winning argument, but one look at Ava’s face told him that they weren’t home free yet. Ava appeared to be totally distressed. “But I’m afraid of top bunks,” she told Connor.

  “Ava’s afraid of heights,” Brianna explained. “That’s why I gave her the bottom bunk.” She looked at her daughter. There was only one way out of this without a squabble. “Tell you what, how would you like to spend the night in my bed?”

  “I won’t fall out?” Ava asked uncertainly, looking up at her mother with wide eyes.

  Brianna smiled. This was familiar territory. Ava was never going to be a daredevil. “No, you won’t fall out, sweetheart. I won’t let you,” she added to reassure her.

  “Okay,” Ava agreed, although she still sounded rather reluctant.

  “Problem solved,” Connor pronounced with a wide grin, looking at Brianna.

  “You’re getting really good with them,” Brianna told him. She didn’t bother to keep the pleased note out of her voice.

  “It’s simple. I just watched you,” Connor said, shrugging off any credit.

  Brianna turned toward her daughter. “Ava, why don’t you stay with your brother for a few minutes while I walk Mr. Fortunado out? When I come back, I’ll get you ready for bed,” she told the little girl.

  Ava brightened immediately. Brianna knew that the little girl liked the idea of being put in charge of her older brother. Ava liked being the boss.

  “Okay, Mama,” she replied.

  Her obedient tone wasn’t fooling anyone, Brianna thought fondly. First chance she got, Ava would be ordering her brother around.

  Ruffling the little girl’s silky hair, Brianna told her daughter, “I’ll be right back.”

  “Good night, half-pint,” Connor said to the little girl, then he turned toward the very unhappy-looking little boy lying listlessly in the bottom bunk. “Feel better, big guy.”

  Rather than saying anything, Axel moaned in response.

  “How come I’m a half-pint and he’s a big guy?” Ava wanted to know. She obviously thought that the word big was complimentary in this case.

  Brianna patted the small, dark head. “I’ll explain it all later, honey,” she promised, hoping to buy herself a little time to come up with an answer. Then, turning toward Connor, she said, “Let’s go.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” he answered obediently. When they reached the front door, Connor commented, “Some night, eh?”

  “Well, you can say that again. At the very least, it’s certainly been an eventful one,” she agreed. And then she smiled up at him, grateful he’d been there with her. “Thanks for all your help,” she told him. “It wouldn’t have gone nearly as smoothly without you there.”

  He looked at her for a second, and then seemed to understand her meaning. “Oh, you’re talking about with the kids. Sure. It wouldn’t have been right just to leave you high and dry, having to cope with a sick kid and all,” he told her.

  “My ex-boyfriend had no qualms about doing that,” Brianna recalled, addressing his last comment first. “And of course I’m talking about help with the kids. As for the other part of this evening,” she said, referring to making love with Connor, “that’s something that we don’t need to talk about.”

  It struck him that she was highly unusual. A woman who didn’t want to take apart and dissect the meaning behind every nuance, every action that had taken place during their lovemaking.

  He looked at her for a long moment, impressed. “You are in a class by yourself, Brianna Childress,” he said just before he bent over and kissed her.

  In a strange, ironic sort of way, Connor thought, he had Charlotte Robinson to thank for this. For bringing Brianna into his life. Not by design, but certainly by happy accident.

  He had a feeling finding this out would not be well received by the woman. Connor suppressed a pleased smile.

>   “I’ll see you tomorrow,” Brianna said, waiting for him to verify her statement. She would be lying if she said that she didn’t live with the specter of Connor leaving permanently in the near future.

  Connor nodded. “And I promise I won’t bring any ice cream or cookies for Axel and Ava.”

  “Axel’ll probably be ready to eat them by tomorrow,” Brianna predicted about her son. “But don’t,” she cautioned just in case Connor was having any second thoughts about what he’d just promised.

  A smile played on his lips as he gave Brianna a little salute, touching two fingers to his temple like a soldier.

  But before he could say goodbye, Ava’s voice was suddenly heard calling, sounding high-pitched and insistent. “Mama, Axel’s going to be sick again.”

  “Go, go!” Connor told her, although the words were rather needless since he addressed them to Brianna’s back. She was already hurrying to the children’s bedroom. “Good luck,” Connor murmured as he pulled the door closed behind him.

  He heard the lock click into place. Satisfied, he walked to his car. He still had to drive home, he reminded himself, and admittedly, he was rather tired.

  But thoughts of making love with Brianna kept him wide-awake all the way home.

  * * *

  “So, how is he?” Connor asked Brianna when he arrived at her house the following day.

  It was almost noon. He would have been there earlier, but he’d actually been busy taking care of some extraneous details, all of which had kept him from driving over here first thing in the morning.

  Although it hadn’t kept him from thinking about making love with Brianna the entire time.

  “Like it never happened,” Brianna answered his question, opening the door all the way for him. The resilience of children never ceased to amaze her. “Come see for yourself,” she said, inviting Connor in. “He’s asking for a do-over.”

  “A do-over?” Connor questioned, puzzled.

  “Yes, he wants to go over to Joey’s house for another sleepover tonight. I told him it wasn’t happening, at least not for a while. He’s not happy about the news,” she added. “But he’ll get used to it,” she said philosophically.