"I didn't know hermits enjoyed such lofty company," she said, her eyes going to Danny constantly. He knew she wanted to hold him, to soothe his crying. "Senator Sterling is a friend of yours?"
"She and I go way back. And I'll use whatever contacts I need to if it helps my son."
"You act like I'm a miracle worker- How long has he been crying like that?" she asked, exasperated.
He had her. "An hour. He doesn't want a bottle."
"Did you buy pacifiers?" She reached for the baby. He gave him up much more willingly than the other time. He couldn't take another minute of the noise.
"No."
"We need some. You can get the stuff out of my car. Please." She tossed him her keys.
He decided the please was an afterthought to him as a client, not a man. He didn't want to be treated as a client. The natural Cassie brought life into his house. The investigator Cassie would be too cool, too competent.
"I doubt I can do anything different with Daniel, but I can give you a break, anyway," she said grudgingly.
He relaxed. Just having her there made a difference.
He folded his fingers around her keys. Get her stuff. To do that he would have to walk across the yard to the oak tree where her car was parked in the shade. He looked at the car, then at Cassie. He'd told her it was his choice to stay inside his house and that was true, but he'd gotten used to it, too.
"Lock it when you're done, okay?" Then she walked into the house, leaving him on his own.
Don't think about it. Just do it. Just do it.
Heath walked away then out the front door, not slowing for a second. He never took his eyes off her car. It was there, at the end of a long tunnel. Focus. Focus. Keep your eyes on the car, on the goal. One step at a time. One victory at a time.
He tried to judge whether he could carry everything in one trip and decided he could. He hefted the briefcase, suitcase and garment bag, locked the car, then walked steadily but quickly back to the house, shut the door with his foot and resisted leaning against it. He just kept moving, up the stairs, down the hall, into the guest room. He dropped her suitcase on the bed and hung the garment bag in the closet, then he checked the adjoining bathroom. Towels, washcloth, soap, shampoo. Okay. She probably brought everything else she needed.
He hurried downstairs. She hadn't emerged from Daniel's room by the time he was done. The quiet opened up his mind again. No more distractions, just the realization of what he'd accomplished. He'd gone beyond the porch. He'd walked a hundred feet. And he was still breathing, although his skin was damp and his mouth dry.
Too early for a bourbon and water? he wondered. Yeah. Way too early.
He went to the nursery instead and stepped quietly in. The rocking chair moved rhythmically.
Peace came over Heath in a rush, a soft place to land after so many years of chaos. He made himself inhale the feeling the way a woman put her face into a bouquet of roses, savoring, committing it to memory. He brushed his hand over his son's head, over the downy hair, the baby-warm skin. Daniel's dark blue eyes shifted sightlessly toward Heath. He sucked on Cassie's little finger like a pacifier.
She'd gotten him to stop crying almost instantly, he realized. He'd been too intent on going to the car to pay complete attention, but now he realized it hadn't taken her more than a minute to calm Daniel.
Cassie looked directly into Heath's eyes; her mouth widened into a leisurely smile-or was it a triumphant one? Damn but she would be nice to wake up with in the morning, all warm and sleepy, stretching her body under the sheet until it pulled away from her naked-
"Are you mad?" she asked, adjusting Daniel, sitting up a little more.
What kind of look had he had on his face? He'd wanted to kiss her, but to her he'd looked mad? Just as well, he decided. It was a complication they didn't need. "I'm not mad. Why would you think that?"
"You looked … I don't know. You looked upset."
"No." He held out his hands to take his son. "Thank you for quieting him."
"My pleasure." She stretched, just like he'd imagined she would, her long body arching, her nipples pressing against the fabric covering them.
A smart man-a man who learned from lessons gone wrong-wouldn't notice such things, but he apparently hadn't learned his lesson. He ached to take her breasts in his hands, to feel the hardness of her nipples and the softness of her flesh, to bury his face against her skin.
"Are you okay?" she asked, standing, crossing her arms as if she knew his thoughts. Her whole mood had changed. She didn't seem angry anymore. Maybe calming Daniel had done the same thing for her.
"I'm fine."
"You got everything from my car?"
He nodded.
"How'd it feel?"
"Like you brought enough to stay a week."
"I mean-" She stopped. "Another topic that's off-limits. Okay."
"The pediatrician was here while you were gone," he said, changing the subject altogether. "He said Daniel is in fine shape."
"Must be nice to have your kind of connections. I don't know any doctors who make house calls these days."
"We've been friends for years." Jake Mercer had been Kyle's pediatrician, too. Heath had designed a house for Jake and his wife. Although Heath was known principally for his skyscrapers, he occasionally designed a house for someone special. "He wants to see Daniel in a week. Sooner if we have any problems."
"Will you try to go to his office?"
"That's my plan." They walked out of the room together but stopped outside the door and looked at each other.
"Where are we headed?" she asked.
"Damned if I know."
"Well, maybe I should unpack."
"Your room is upstairs, second door on the right." Across from mine.
She started up the stairs, but stopped. "I apologize for losing my temper."
"No need to apologize. It was an honest reaction. I like honesty."
"I felt like a kid on my first job, having the boss order me like that."
"I'm sorry. I didn't know any other way to get you back here. I need you."
Her entire demeanor changed. Magic words, apparently. It was only the truth.
"I'll unpack. Do we have groceries or should I go get some? I could fix steaks for dinner."
Except for when his parents visited, no one ever made him dinner. He had guests over now and then, but he ordered in or sometimes they brought food. But having someone else in his kitchen, sharing the space, cleaning up together-it had been so long. "I've got steaks in the freezer. I called my parents to tell them the news," he added as she reached the top of the stairs. "I expect they'll be out to visit at some point."
"Maybe they could stay for a while, and you wouldn't need a nanny."
"I don't plan to make them that comfortable."
Cassie laughed as she walked away. The sound echoed in his big, empty house, filling it, lightening the gloom again. He looked at Daniel, who was still asleep in his arms. "I'm going to have to be very careful," he whispered to his son. "She could be a hard habit to break. Have to be careful for her sake, too, don't you think? Or is that egotistical?" Was it? He thought he saw mutual interest, but maybe not. He had no doubt that Daniel was the draw for her, but maybe him, too, a little?
He resisted the temptation to follow her up the stairs, to talk to her while she put things away. He wondered about her life in foster care. Why had she been put there? Was the experience good or bad? Why had she chosen to become a private investigator? Was it tied to her past somehow?
Would she even answer those kinds of questions? He'd hired her to do a job. Anything beyond that-like fixing dinner, which he'd never expected her to do-was a bonus. He shouldn't do anything to risk her quitting before he got some of the legal issues dealt with and a nanny in place. If she got mad enough, she would find a way to quit, no matter what her boss said.
A nanny. He didn't want someone else living full-time in his house with him, but could he manage having only daytime help? Would Daniel be the kind of baby to sleep most of the night or be up?
It was something Heath needed to know before he hired someone, or even started interviewing. That could take a few days, at least.
Sounds like a stall.
And your point is?
He cut off his internal dialogue then realized he hadn't moved since Cassie had jogged up the stairs. He should do something. If he put Daniel in his crib would he wake up? It was probably time for him to eat, anyway.