"Close." Piper shut the door behind him and looked at his most excellent bum in nicely fitting jeans. Apart from her grungy shirt, she was also wearing yoga pants hanging low on her hips, and she wasn't wearing any shoes.
"Just another exciting Friday night," Piper muttered, following him into the living room.
"That's actually why I'm here," Jaeger said, standing next to Ty's playpen. The tips of his fingers brushed Ty's dark head, and Ty grinned up at him. How could he not see the resemblance? Piper wondered. They had the same eyes, the same hair and the same smile.
"I've been let off babysitting duty. Shaw has tonsillitis and Linc is staying home with him," Jaeger explained. "So I thought you might want to go to Latimore's exhibition."
Piper frowned, confused. Jeans, a long-sleeve cobalt T-shirt and a battered leather jacket were not what she would have expected him to wear to an opening night of such importance. "With you?"
"Nope, with my sister Sage." Jaeger pulled an invitation from the inside pocket of his jacket and handed it to her. He shrugged out of the leather and tossed it over the back of a chair. "She says she'll meet you there. She's as big a fan of art as you are, so you should like each other."
"But Ty..."
Jaeger bent over the side of the playpen, and Piper couldn't help admiring his hard, tight butt as he picked up Ty and settled the baby on his hip. "This little dude and I will drink beer and watch ESPN."
"But-"
"Piper, it seems to me that you don't have a lot of people to rely on. I understand that Ty is your priority, but you deserve to have some fun, too. Let me make you happy. Let me do this for you."
No, this was too much! On top of the advance and the great sex, she didn't think she could cope with him being so ridiculously thoughtful. How was she supposed to resist him?
"Look, I admit I don't have a hell of a lot of experience with babies, but I can now change a diaper. I'm pretty sure I can make a bottle if you tell me how. Besides, I checked in with Ceri, and she said Rainn will be downstairs because he's studying, so if Ty starts screaming his head off, I'll call him to give me a hand."
Piper bit the inside of her lip, still undecided. She flicked her finger against the edges of the card. "I can't, Jaeger. I haven't fed Ty yet. I'd need to shower, put on makeup, a dress. Get into the city."
Ty's little hand reached up to grab Jaeger's ear, then his hair. Jaeger just flashed him a quick smile and allowed Ty's little hands to explore.
"Sage is going to start looking for you later. I knew you'd need time to sort Ty out and to give me a long lecture on what to do and what not to do." Ty shouted, and Jaeger followed his eyes to the playpen. He frowned at the pile of toys on the floor. "You're going to have to be more specific, dude."
"The yellow duck," Piper told him. "It's his favorite."
Jaeger picked up the duck and handed it over. Ty waved the skinny animal around, its beak scraping along Jaeger's jaw. "Take a break, Piper. Go meet my sister, talk art, have some wine."
"I took a break last night," Piper said, staring at the floor.
"Is there a law somewhere stating single moms can't go out two nights in a row?" Jaeger asked.
"But...you could be watching basketball!"
"I could also be at a cocktail party, having dinner, seeing a show on Broadway." Jaeger held her eyes. "If I wanted to be there, I would be. I choose to be here."
"But why?"
Jaeger shrugged, and Ty loved the up-and-down movement. "Because I can do any of those things on any other night. What you can't do every night is be one of the first people in the world to see Latimore's new work. I like his art, but you love it. You appreciate it at a depth I don't. So, I'd like you to go, even though you had a-" the corners of his mouth turned up "-break last night."
Piper looked from Jaeger to Ty and back again. Could she leave Ty with him? Could she trust him?
On the other hand, she didn't have a reason not to trust him. He was Ty's dad, even though he didn't know it, and if he came to like Ty a little, maybe that would dilute his shocked reaction when the time came to tell him the truth.
If the time came to tell him about Ty, she silently amended.
"I've got this, Piper. Really."
Ty looked happy enough with Jaeger, she thought. He was a pretty easygoing child and as sociable as a golden retriever. Provided he was fed, was clean and had company, he wouldn't fuss. She'd be gone only two hours, three at the most. For most of those hours Ty would be asleep. Rainn was five seconds away if something went wrong or if Jaeger found himself out of his depth.
She could be home by half-past ten if she hustled. Jaeger was right. How often did one get to meet the reclusive artist, be the first to see his new work? She was also quite curious to meet Jaeger's sister...
If their lives hadn't taken such a U-turn, if they had been two normal people looking for love, was this what living with Jaeger would have been like? Spontaneity and fun? The giving and receiving of pleasure, both in bed and out?
"I can see the capitulation in your eyes." Jaeger grinned. "Get moving, honey."
Piper looked at the mess in the kitchen and pushed her curls back. "I need to clean the kitchen first."
"I can handle the kitchen. You need to shower." Jaeger reached out and touched the tip of his finger to the ends of her hair. Then, wrapping a curl around his fist, he nudged her chin up with his knuckle. "But first...this."
Still holding Ty, he leaned in and touched his mouth to hers, his lips cool and assured. He kept a lid on the kiss, not allowing the churning heat to run away from them. Piper heard Ty's chortle at this new game, felt his small hand bouncing off her head as she closed her eyes and took this moment.
It was over too soon. Piper watched as Jaeger pulled back from her and looked at his son, their son.
"Kissing your mommy is fun. Even when she smells like chicken."
Ty cocked his head and grinned up at Jaeger. Jaeger smiled back, and Piper's heart stopped as the two identical smiles held.
God, how much longer could she keep this from him? One of these days he would look at Ty and think This kid looks like me, and then she'd be up the proverbial creek without a paddle and with holes in her canoe.
After tonight she would have to limit the amount of contact Ty and Jaeger had. She would keep them apart. Jaeger had dropped into her life and within another week, maybe two, he'd be gone. He would buy the stones and move on and forget about them both.
She couldn't, wouldn't, fall into the trap of playing happy family. It was too easy to lean on him, to be a part of something bigger and better than just her and Ty. But Jaeger wasn't the type who hunkered down for the long term, and if she thought he might change, she was kidding herself.
Her mother had spent all of her adult life hoping that her father would change, that he'd commit to her, that he'd show interest in the daughter they'd made together.
Jaeger nodded to the stairs. "Get a move on. You are going to be late. Oh, and remind me to give you your check before I go."
Piper held back her relieved sigh. So their deal was still on. Her shoulders dropped three inches. "Thank you. Really. For everything. I'm very grateful."
"No worries," Jaeger replied, his tone relaxed. He turned away and walked toward the kitchen, stopping in the doorway when he saw the mess. "That was your dinner, Ty? Yuck. Let's order pizza. Pepperoni, anchovies, olives? What's your poison?"
"There's some baby food in the freezer. He's too young to eat pizza," Piper said, still hovering at the bottom of the stairs.
Jaeger made a production of looking at Ty and rolling his eyes. "Your mommy thinks I'm an idiot. Of course I know babies can't eat pizza. But Chinese-you can eat Chinese, can't you?"
* * *
Jaeger, his hands clammy and his breathing shallow, decided to keep his eyes on Ty for every second he was in charge. If he did, then nothing would happen to the kid.
When Ty fell asleep, he'd keep watching him, make sure he was breathing. Ty would be safe on his watch.
He'd debated long and hard whether he wanted to do this-whether he could spend concentrated alone-time with a baby. But the excitement he'd seen earlier on Piper's face was worth a little cold sweat.
He liked making Piper happy, both in bed and out, and that fact made his blood run freezing cold. Between Piper and her son, Jaeger was six-foot-plus of scared.