“Oh, no, you don’t.” He clutched her arm midair and peered at her with a sweet smile.
Their gazes collided, and she forgot about the snow to concentrate on his eyes. The sharp blue had warmed and held fire. He loosened his grip on her arms and wrapped them around his neck. He bent forward, his lips seeking hers.
The warmth of his lips sent all cold fleeing. She rose on her tiptoes and kissed him with all the emotions she’d kept bottled up this week. He pulled her closer, and she reveled in finally letting go of emotions she’d had to keep pent up.
She’d fallen for this man again. Big time. And at this exact moment, held tightly in his arms, she didn’t care about all the problems that would or could bring to her life. Like the fact that he’d once betrayed her. Or that he didn’t live in the same town.
All that mattered was she cared for him, and he cared for her.
The front door creaked open, but she didn’t want to break contact to see who’d stepped out.
“Dad!” Jessie yelled. “Dad, are you and Megan out there?”
Reid lifted his head, and cold immediately took the place of his mouth.
“Busted,” he whispered and turned toward the door.
Megan moved out of his arms, her face starting to flush at being caught kissing by his daughter. At least a huge tree hid them from view.
“What do you need, Jess?” Reid smiled down at Megan and plucked snow out of her hair.
“It’s Ella. She says she doesn’t feel good, and she’s calling for Megan.”
Ella!Megan whipped around the tree and jogged toward the house. She knew better than to let her guard down and have some fun. Every time she did, something happened to snap her back to reality.
She raced for the house, passing Jessie. She heard Reid following at a slower pace. Inside, she stomped the snow from her shoes and charged up the stairs to burst into Ella’s room.
She sought out her daughter’s face. She grimaced in pain and clutched her stomach.
“What’s wrong, Ella?”
“I have a stomachache.”
Megan sat on the bed and rested her hand on Ella’s forehead. She was burning up. She turned to Reid, who’d come to the door with Jessie. “Do you have a thermometer?”
“I’ll get it.” Jessie raced away.
Megan stroked Ella’s back. “Tell me about your tummy.”
“It hurts really bad when I breathe.” She wrapped her arms tighter around her middle. Wheezing came from her chest as Ella struggled to take breaths.
Jessie returned with an electronic thermometer. Megan turned it on and inserted it in Ella’s mouth. The silence in the room, save the intermittent beep of the thermometer, was nearly palpable. Megan kept stroking Ella’s back until the thermometer beeped the final time.
She lifted it and read 102.6. She looked at Reid. “I need to call Dr. Browne. Will you stay with Ella?”
“Of course.”
“I’ll be right back, sweetie.” Megan got up.
At the door, Reid stopped Megan. “How high is it?” he whispered.
“It’s 102.6.”
He gave a grave nod, and Megan rushed out of the room. Reid knew as well as she did that this temperature, which might not be dangerous for a healthy child, was too high for Ella.
Megan dug her phone from her purse and dialed Dr. Browne’s answering service. Megan left a message and knew the doctor would return the call in a few minutes. Megan desperately wanted to be with her daughter while she waited. Of course she did. But it was better to be able to talk freely with the doctor without Ella overhearing the conversation.
Megan glanced around the hallway. Her jacket lay on the floor where she’d tossed it as she’d run toward Ella. She hung it on the newel post next to Reid’s, taking a smidgen of comfort from her jacket touching his. She really wished he was next to her, holding her and telling her Ella would be all right.
