Page 71 of The Last Viking

Teddy took one look at Meredith’s tears and began to wail himself. She rubbed his back distractedly till he ceased sobbing and tucked his face sleepily into her neck.

Meredith scanned her wonderfully transformed backyard. Rolf must have suspected how much the rose fragrance meant to her when he’d entered her bathroom last night. Somehow, he’d known. Oh, God, how she loved him!

Before she walked away, Thea informed her softly, “Rolf said he wanted you to remember him, forever and ever, whenever you smell roses.”

Meredith sighed.

“And he said it’s your first bride gift.”

Chapter Thirteen

“Let me take Teddy.”

Mike came up to her and took the sleeping child from her arms with an ease that startled her for a young bachelor. Teddy blinked his eyes at the man nestling him onto his shoulder.

“How ya doin’, cowboy?” Mike playfully patted his well-padded rump. Amazingly, her grad assistant was wearing an Oxford collared shirt and jeans and a pair of black-and-white checkered running shoes that matched the miniature ones on the boy’s feet.

“Mike,” the child murmured contentedly before nodding off again.

“Do you know Teddy’s mother well?” Meredith asked. It was a personal question she wouldn’t have asked just a few days ago.

“Sonja?” Mike squirmed under her scrutiny.

Meredith glanced off in the distance where a blond-haired woman in Viking attire raised her hand and waved at them before resuming her soap-making demonstration. Meredith remembered her now. Sonja Wareham. A divorcee and new assistant professor. Although she’d only met her a few times at college functions, Meredith recalled her as being very nice. Rather quiet and serious, but definitely nice. Was it Mike’s contact with Sonja, who was an active SCA re-enactor, that had gotten the organization involved in the project?

Mike’s ears turned red. “We’ve dated a few times.”

“Well, well, well,” she teased. “Apparently, your taste isn’t as atrocious as I thought.” Teasing was another thing she’d always avoided with her employees. Why? she wondered now. Was her reserve a trait she’d picked up from her parents? The them-versus-us mentality separating people into classes, whether they were lines drawn by intelligence, money, birth, or occupation.

“Hey, just ’cause I lick my chops over a jelly donut doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate a bagel once in a while.”

Meredith laughed. “I don’t think Sonja would appreciate being compared to a bagel. And by the way, the jelly donut left a message for you on the office answering machine.”

“Oh, that,” Mike said, his ears burning redder. “I think she’s more interested in Rolf than me.”

Why did that not surprise Meredith?

“Oh, no!” Mike said. “Rolf’s gonna cut out my loose tongue.”

“So, where is the matchmaker from Valhalla?”

“Out front, unloading the truck.” Mike started to walk away.

“Whoa!” she said to his back. “Where have you two been?”

His shoulders slumped as he realized he wasn’t going to escape so easily. Turning, he asked, “Is it true that you two are gonna get hitched?”

“No!”

Mike’s blue eyes widened. “Rolf seems to think so.”

“He doesn’t listen to me, that’s why.”

“Honest to God, Dr. Foster, he’s convinced that you’re in love with him. I mean, you wouldn’t believe all the stuff he bought today because he’s so crazy in love. And he thinks—”

Crazy in love? “Mike, I never said I didn’t love him. I do, even though we’ve only known each other a few days. But I won’t marry him.” Was she really telling Mike about her intimate feelings? It was so…inappropriate. “I won’t marry him,” she repeated nonetheless.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” he muttered.