She stood, heading over to the closet, but tossing a grin over her shoulder at Christian. “I have something for you too.” She pulled out the infamous disco ball, the subject of their first inside joke.
He threw his head back in a barking laugh. “Why do you still have that thing?”
A thrill of pleasure zipped through her at his uninhibited joy. “I found it under the stairs yesterday. It’s yours to hang in your house to remind you of all the good times you had while living here.”
“I have a better idea.” Playful mischief sparked in his eyes as he kicked off his shoes and took the ball from her.
Isla scrunched her face as she watched him step onto the bed. “What’re you doing, Daddy?”
Instead of responding, he pushed the hook—still attached to the top of the ball—into the existing hole in the ceiling and flicked on the hidden switch. Hopping back to the floor, he made a show of smoothing out the bedspread. “Just in case wrinkles give you the ick.”
Hallie laughed. “You’re always thinking of me.”
His flirty smolder sucked the air from her as he killed the ceiling light, throwing the room into darkness. Both girls shrieked with delight as pinwheels of neon danced around the walls.
Hallie felt Christian’s arms come around her from behind. “Thank you for making my girls feel so special,” he whispered, his breath tickling the wisps of hair around her ear. “We’re all so lucky you came into our lives.”
The sincerity of his gratitude sent giddy shivers racing down her spine. Or maybe it was the sultry way he’d said it. Reaching behind her head, she rested her hand against his cheek.
In moments like this, all her confusion seemed to fade, leaving her with quiet assurances that a life with Christian could work. But she knew that once the moment ended, the same doubts would swiftly return.
Doubts about her ability to step in as a mother, and how she’d manage her business while filling that role. And just as strong, was Christian really ready to give his heart to another woman after the trauma of his past?
But for now, she pushed them all aside. She wanted to enjoy this moment for as long as it lasted.
Christian stepped out of Isla’s room on Friday night, prepared to head downstairs when the faint squeak of Penelope’s glider chair drifted into the hallway.
Odd.
Had his daughter climbed out of her crib again? Now that she knew how to escape, keeping her in was becoming more impossible by the day. He needed to convert her crib into a toddler bed before she got hurt.
And while he was at it, he’d fix the chair so it wouldn’t squeak anymore.
Glancing into her room, the hallway light threw enough of a spotlight near the glider to see. His heart squeezed at the sight of Hallie snuggling Penelope inward against her chest. Passed out on her nanny’s shoulder, the girl clutched the pink bunny Hallie had given her in one arm, her favorite blanket in the other.
Seeing the woman he loved cradle his daughter so sweetly, with her cheek resting on Penelope’s wispy hair, sucked all the air from Christian’s lungs. For someone who claimed she wasn’t ready to be a mom, the way she cared for the girls so completely fit the role already.
Her obvious discomfort around them early on had been non-existent for weeks, replaced by a subtle calm that affected not only Isla and Penelope, but Christian too. She wasn’t trying to get the girls to like her. They loved her because it was impossible not to. And he trusted her for the same reason. No reservations, no stipulations. She was exactly what they all needed. He wanted her by his side, helping him raise his kids.
If only he could convince her of that. And the fact that he stillwondered whether he was setting them all up for disaster terrified him. He had no doubt shecouldrise to the occasion, but she had to believe it too.
Silently, he stepped to them, placing a hand on Hallie’s free shoulder. “I thought you’d left already.”
She stirred, turning a sleepy-eyed gaze onto him. “She fell asleep before I could put her in her crib. I didn’t want to disturb her.”
“It happens to the best of us.” He’d been nap-trapped with both girls more times than he could count.
Christian lifted Penelope from her arms,shhhingthe child when she began to whine. He rubbed her back a few times as she settled, then lowered her into the crib. Hallie handed him the pink bunny that had dropped to the floor during the hand-off. He set it beside the girl.
Motioning for Hallie to follow him, he led the way to the door, turning back before stepping into the hall. She remained in front of the crib. The darkness made it difficult to see her expression, but he could’ve sworn he detected some longing in the soft smile gracing her face as she watched the sleeping child.
“Hallie,” he whispered. “She’ll be okay.”
With one last glance at Penelope, she followed him from the room. Christian’s mind still held onto the sweet scene he’d stumbled upon as they headed downstairs to the kitchen.
Plucking a Tupperware container from the dishwasher, he slid the rest of Hallie’s homemade chicken tenders into it. He worked in silence, feeling her welcome presence nearby as she cleared away the dinner dishes.
“Hey.” Her voice cut into his thoughts. “Are you okay?”
