“She only fell asleep again a few minutes ago,” he whispered, as Rae sat beside him. “I think I’m either getting used to how hot she is or her fever’s coming down.”
“She wasn’t showing any signs of being sick when I left. I’m so sorry,” she said, her voice soft as she put a hand on Beth’s forehead. “I’ll get the thermometer.”
“It’s on the kitchen table.”
“You’re a wonderful man, Dylan Rademaker.”
Her gaze met his, and a sweet warmth filled him with a powerful intensity. It was a good thing he held a sick baby in his arms, or he’d have grabbed her mother and kissed her the way he’d been wanting to for months. His feelings must have shown because Rae frowned, looking troubled, and turned away. If he wasn’t careful, he could mess up what they had.
Yet the more deeply he came to love Rae and her children, the more he was realizing he couldn’t live like this much longer. What if she never came to care for him as any more than a friend? He was starting to understand he could lose her either way.
Rae sat beside him and put the device in Beth’s ear. It beeped, causing the little girl to stir, and her mother removed it. Dylan patted Beth’s back and whispered soothing words. She settled down again.
“It’s just under a hundred,” Rae said softly. “What was it earlier?”
“A hundred and one,” Dylan whispered. “I didn’t give her anything, but I checked online, and one article said to wet her hair and have her eat a Popsicle. I tried that, but it made her throw up again.”
“It looks like her temperature’s coming down, so you did good.” Rae held out her hands. “You’re a natural at this.”
He shook his head, keeping his voice low. “Let her sleep a while longer before trying to move her.”
“I hate to take advantage of you,” Rae said but dropped her hands.
“It could just as easily be you looking after Jayden when he’s sick.” Dylan leaned back his head. “How’d your date go?”
“Really nice.” Rae yawned. “Tim’s a great guy.”
Dylan gave a little nod, trying not to show his disappointment. From her attitude about the dates and a few comments he’d overheard her make to Amelia, he was pretty sure Rae would probably quit eRapport soon. She yawned again, and her head slid to his shoulder. Making sure Beth was in place, he slid his arm across Rae’s shoulder. Both of them snuggled closer to him.
With a sigh, Dylan closed his eyes. When would she see how right this was?What was he going to do if this Tim was the guy she finally connected with?
13
Dylan paused at the bottom of the stairs leading up to his apartment and listened to the sound of crickets. The warm August evening hadn’t cooled off much, in spite of the lateness of the hour. He felt sluggish.
Rae’s comment about being uncomfortable going out with people who were looking for a relationship had kept coming back to him. Like her, he’d been upfront on eRapport about not looking for anything serious. But the women he’d been dating still came on the dates hopeful they could change his mind. Disappointing them had started to wear on his soul, like he was some kind of cheat. In a sense, maybe he was, since he was in love with Rae.
Dylan trudged up the steps. He wasn’t normally a bummer kind of guy, but this whole thing with her was turning him into one. In the past, when he’d been into a woman who didn’t reciprocate his feelings, he’d been able to move on. Not with Rae.
His life was so intertwined with hers. The time he spent in her company was turning into torture. He wanted to take her into his arms and tell her how he felt. He needed to be so much more than the friend she went shopping with every Saturday, who she traded babysitting with, or who maintained her car. Something had to change.
At the top of the stairs, he paused outside her door. Taking a deep breath, he gave it a soft tap and called, “It’s me.”
“Come in.”
Dylan did and found her in the rocking chair with Beth asleep on her lap. He knelt by the chair and kissed the toddler’s forehead, wanting to do the same to her mother. The little girl’s forehead was warm to his touch, and her slow breaths rattled a little.
“Ah, she’s sick again,” he said.
“She’s had a rough month. I think it’s the sniffles,” Rae said. “The fever came on after dinner.”
“I can take her for a while.”
When Rae gave a relieved nod, he gently took the child and sat on the couch with her. Beth curled up against him as she always did, and his heart swelled. He might not be her father, but he loved her as though he were.
Rae rose stiffly from the chair like she’d been there a long time and stretched.
“I’m sorry I was out playing while you had a tough night.” Dylan wished once again he could offer her the comfort and support a husband would have.
