Tanya Michaels - Mistletoe Baby

They lay together stretched out on the couch for some time, dozing but neither of them falling asleep for long. David idly massaged the small of Rachel’s back, which she seemed to like, judging from the occasional sighs.

He kissed the top of her head. “I don’t think you told me-what actually tipped Ari off about the baby?”

“A combination of a couple of different things. A biggie seemed to be our lunch with her the other day. She said it was obvious there was something we weren’t telling her.”

The comment lodged under his skin like a splinter. He and Rachel had definitely been keeping secrets, and not only the happy news of the pregnancy. As for the other? It was probably impolitic to ask where they stood relationship-wise while he still had her naked against him. They’d dragged an afghan over their bodies as their temperatures dropped back to normal, but neither of them had bothered to dress. Just being around Rachel when she was this uninhibited made him want her again.

Would she expect him to stay the night, or would taking a step that gargantuan be overkill? Despite himself, he grinned. After what they’d just shared, it was hard to imagine anything else being seen as too much, too soon. “I hate to leave you, but I guess I should get back to the dogs.”

She nodded. “I suppose that’s the responsible thing to do.”

He felt around for various pieces of clothing while she watched, her expression inscrutable. “Rach, I can’t tell you how glad I am that you called.”

She shot him a smile so wicked it was probably illegal in fifteen states. “Well, you kept saying that if there was anything I needed…”

He laughed out loud, a tremendous weight off his chest. For the first time all year, he felt deep down in his soul that they were going to be okay. It would take work, and it wouldn’t happen overnight, but they were going to be okay.

His mother was right-this was the season of miracles.

WHITE ROSES awaited Rachel when she walked into work on Wednesday morning.

May nodded toward them with an approving grin. “Someone loves you.”

The words gave Rachel warm fuzzies. All morning, though, the quick pulses of joy were followed by nervousness. When she’d suggested to David in November that they go their separate ways, she’d been almost numb. Even he, by tacit admission and his total lack of protest, had acknowledged how much their relationship had deteriorated. Now…Last night had been like regaining feeling in a frostbitten extremity. Along with the extreme pleasure he’d brought her, he’d awakened a dormant pain. Because, for the first time in a long time, she truly realized how much she had to lose.

She made herself wait half an hour, rather than give in to her eager impulse to call him. Instead, she contacted Belle Fulton with some bids she’d put together for the chamber of commerce, then helped May organize a promotional calendar for the coming new year, with seasonally themed discounts and specials. The entire time, David was at the back of her mind, patiently waiting.

Her fingers shook as she dialed the number she knew by heart, and she smiled wryly. Where was the brazen woman who’d slowly stripped for her husband the night before? Had he guessed that when she reached for that first button, part of her had been petrified? It had been so worth it, though. She’d felt glorious, powerful, cherished.

“Waide Supply. David Waide speaking.”

“Hey. This is Rachel Waide speaking.”

She could feel him smile into the phone. “Hey, gorgeous. I was just thinking about you. Of course, that’s because I haven’t stopped thinking about you since I left last night.”

“Glad to know I made an impression.” She glanced around, making sure May was busy and out of earshot, then lowered her voice. “So, I was thinking.”

“Go on,” he encouraged. “It worked out really well the last time you called me to share your thoughts.”

She laughed, but the nervousness that had been dogging her expanded sharply in her lungs-like when you take too deep a breath in really cold air. “David, last night was wonderful, but it might have been a bit…pre-mature. We might have moved a little fast.”

“I was really hoping this conversation was going to go differently,” he said, forlorn.

“But I liked the direction we were moving in,” she added. “I thought maybe we could, um, date for a little while? I know, you probably think it sounds stupid, but-”

“It sounds a whole hell of a lot better than losing you,” he said emphatically.

Relief coursed through her. “In that case, I ordered two tickets to the Winter Wonderland Dance. What are you doing Friday night?”

INSTEAD OF falling into the family business, Tanner Waide had struck out on his own. He ran a small but steadily growing bookkeeping service out of his apartment. In fact, despite what Lilah and Tanner conveniently let their parents and guardians believe until after the wedding, David suspected that makeshift office was about the only purpose the apartment served anymore. During work hours, when Lilah was at the school, Tanner could almost always be found here.

David knocked, more relieved than he would have expected when his brother called out, “Just a sec!”

A moment later, the door swung wide. “Dave, hey. Come on in, but watch your step. My lease is up at the end of the month, and it’s a maze of boxes in here.”

“I see that.” The little one-bedroom had never been much to look at, but with so many of Tanner’s personal belongings already packed, the place was dingier than usual. Was this Mistletoe’s answer to a bachelor pad? He shuddered, wondering how close he’d come to a future that looked like this.

“What’s up?” Tanner asked.

David sat on the lumpy orange sofa the landlord had thrown in with the deposit of the first and last month’s rent. “I came by to see if you wanted to grab lunch, but maybe it’s better if we talk where no friendly neighbors can overhear us. I need to ask your help with something.”

“My help? Wow, knock me over with a feather.”

David raised an eyebrow. “Let me know when you’re done making jokes.”

“What makes you think I was joking?” Tanner dumped some haphazardly stacked CDs out of a blue milk crate, flipped it over and sat on the plastic cube. “Don’t keep me in suspense. What do you need?”

Covert help with furniture assembly, but the simple request didn’t spill out.

Instead, David stumbled over the urge to blurt out everything that had happened for the past month and get his brother’s relationship advice now that he’d been gifted with a second chance. But, aside from the fact he and Rachel had agreed not to discuss that with his family, David wasn’t sure he was even capable of that conversation-admitting that he had made such a hash of his marriage that his wife had left.

Why was this so hard? Everyone-Tanner, Ari, their mother-had made it clear they’d be willing to listen, to provide any kind of support that was in their power. Yet, even with a close-knit family, David didn’t make a practice of turning to others for help. By the time he was in fifth grade, he hadn’t needed assistance with homework and by the time he’d hit middle school he’d been earning extra money as a peer tutor. He’d never had his heart broken as a teenager, had never had to worry about finding a job and had been blessed with a college scholarship. Even when it came to the kids’ soccer teams, he was one of the coaches able to manage without an assistant when they didn’t have volunteers. What his mother had said to him a few weeks ago was true: You were the solution finder.

Were being the operative word. He was not only beginning to realize there was nothing wrong with occasionally leaning on others, he suspected that if he didn’t start getting comfortable with that idea, he really might lose Rachel. For good. Besides, he was going to be a father. While he hoped his kid would grow up to be self-sufficient, David wanted to set the most positive example possible-and that didn’t include being too proud to let people who loved him lend a hand.

He waded in slowly. “Things are…awkward with Rachel. Nothing I can’t fix,” he hurried to add, mentally kicking himself for the qualifier. “What I mean is, I think everything will be fine, but we’re in a delicate stage. I worry that a lot of times, my foot ends up in my mouth.”

Tanner laughed. “Been there a time or two myself.”

“I want to make damn sure she knows how much I love her, even if I screw up from time to time. Tanner, you can keep a secret, right? Even from Lilah.”

His brother frowned. “That wouldn’t be my first choice, but for you, yeah.”

“Rachel’s pregnant.” Just saying the words sent adrenaline through him, exhilaration building. “We’re having a baby.”

“All right!” Tanner came off the crate to clap him on the shoulder. “That is the best news I’ve heard since Lilah told me she’d marry me. Congratulations, I am so happy for the two of you.”

“Thanks. We’re thrilled, obviously, but there are a bunch of other emotions under the surface, too.”

“I’m sure.” Tanner sobered. “You guys have been through so much. Is she worried about…well, you know?”

“Losing the baby? Whether they talk about it or not, I figure all expecting mothers probably are a tiny bit scared of that during their first trimester. Multiply Rachel’s ‘tiny’ by a million. The doctors told her last time that it wasn’t uncommon and that an isolated miscarriage didn’t automatically increase the chances of another one, but after the previous disappointments…Last week, during one of those awkward conversations I mentioned, she hit me with the out-of-the-blue announcement that I handled the aftermath wrong. That I wasn’t there for her in the right way and she felt alone.”