Their Baby Bond. Karen Smith Rose

       Chapter Two

       D inner with the Galenos was an adventure, Tori decided, as she sat between Jake and Ricky. She made herself concentrate on the twins—that was easier than dealing with the attraction she still felt for Jake—and paid attention to everything they did. Maybe she’d learn something about parenting as she watched Nina interact with them.

      When Ricky spilled his milk, it ran off the table and onto Tori’s thigh. Nina was much more upset than she was.

      Ricky looked upset, too, as if he was ready to cry, until Tori smiled at him. “Milk will wash right out.” She gave him her napkin. “Come on, help me mop it up.”

      While he scurried to wipe the drips on the chair, she helped Nina with the table. She caught Jake watching her and wished she knew what he was thinking. Then again, maybe she didn’t want to know. Every time his arm grazed hers, every time he reached for a platter or serving dish, she was much too aware of his scent, as well as his sheer physical presence. Surely she didn’t still have a crush on him after all these years! Maybe these vibrations were what dating experts called chemistry? If so, she’d never experienced it before…except when she was a teenager and Jake was anywhere within ten feet of her.

      After dinner, in spite of Nina’s and Rita’s protests, Tori helped clean up. She wasn’t the type to sit while others worked. When they’d finished in the kitchen, they joined the men on the patio.

      Ricky pulled on Jake’s arm. “When are we going for ice cream?”

      “We just had dinner,” Jake replied with a grin.

      “I saved room,” Ricky insisted, then looked at Tori. “Are you coming, too?”

      “Oh, I don’t know…” she began.

      Approaching her chair, Ricky wheedled, “Uncle Jake says it’s the best ice cream in Santa Fe. Mom and grandma won’t come because they say they’ll get fat if they eat it.”

      When Ryan added, “Please come,” she looked into their dark-brown eyes and couldn’t refuse.

      “Only if it’s all right with your uncle Jake.”

      A glance at Jake told her nothing. “Of course you’re welcome to come.” His face was perfectly blank, and his eyes reflected none of his thoughts.

      Carlo’s Place was a few blocks away—a small, brown stucco building with two parking spaces.

      “Most of his customers are within walking distance,” Jake explained as if reading her thoughts.

      The bench seat of Jake’s truck had seemed much too intimate during their drive here.

      After the boys unfastened their seat belts in the back, Jake helped them out. His truck’s running board was high off the ground.

      “If you wait, I’ll give you a hand,” he offered.

      The last thing she wanted was Jake’s skin pressed against hers. “I’m fine.”

      She proved it by sliding to the edge of her seat and then hopping down as gracefully as she could. She thought she saw a knowing smile play on Jake’s lips, but couldn’t be sure because it was gone too quickly.

      Ten minutes later they were sitting at a round redwood table with a striped yellow-and-white umbrella. The boys’ cones were dripping all over their hands, but Jake was ignoring that, so Tori did, too.

      Leaning close to her, Jake murmured, “I have those wet-wipe things in the truck. I wouldn’t go anywhere without them.”

      She smiled. “I imagine most kids are messy with ice-cream cones.”

      With a quick half shrug, he remarked, “Don’t know. I just know these two can make a mess of whatever they get into.” Looking her squarely in the eye, he asked, “Are you ready for that?”

      She didn’t hesitate. “Yes. More than ready. I’ve wanted children for years.”

      “Your husband didn’t?”

      Confiding in Jake would create a bond between them that Tori didn’t want. It was better if she kept her distance, better if she let the attraction between them sizzle and burn out. “It’s a long story.”

      With a penetrating look, Jake sat back and gave his attention to his ice-cream cone, stretching his legs out under the table. The swirl of his tongue on the dessert sent a shiver up Tori’s back.

      After he lazily licked chocolate from his lips, he acknowledged, “I guess everybody has one of those stories.”

      An awkward stretch of time settled between them as cars sped up and down the street. Ricky and his brother took licks from each other’s cones as dusk settled in and began to envelop the city.

      Finally Jake asked, “What did you think of Charlie?”

      She’d caught Jake watching Charlie carefully more than once. “I didn’t spend much time talking with him. Nina likes him a lot. He seems good with the boys.”

      Jake frowned. “She’s only been dating him for two months. I just met him last weekend when she invited him to Sunday dinner.”

      “And?”

      “I don’t know. Today you can’t be too careful, that’s all. He’s a car salesman, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I just hope he’s not handing her a line. I can’t believe she’s ready to jump right in so soon after Frank.”

      “Maybe she feels the boys need a father figure.”

      “They have me.”

      Jake’s arm was almost touching hers. Tori sat back and gave him a sideways glance. “Nina’s afraid you aren’t going to stay in Santa Fe. Are you?”

      He finished his cone and wiped his fingers on a napkin. “I don’t know. But no matter where I am, I’ll be part of their lives.”

      After she took the last bite of her own cone, she wiped her lips. Just then Jake turned toward her, and his gaze lingered where she’d wiped. Feeling hot, bothered and unsettled, she asked, “Why did you come back to Santa Fe?”

      The question brought his gaze to hers. Two cars zoomed up the street before he answered her. “I had to get out of police work for a while. I like working with my hands. I’ve done that for years, mostly on weekend projects for friends. I find peace in it, and I need that now.”

      Tori had always admired his honesty. She had the feeling Jake was living in the moment, not knowing what was going to happen next. She’d done that after her divorce.

      “Speaking of working with ceramic tile,” he said, changing the subject easily, “have you picked out what you want to use yet?”

      She shook her head. “I can do that this week. The thing is, I’d love to use hand-painted tiles. I know it would be expensive to use them everywhere, but I hoped I could find some to use as accents here and there. I haven’t had a chance to look into it, though.”

      “I know someone who does hand-painted work. He lives in Taos. If you’d like to see what he has to offer, we could drive up there on Saturday afternoon. Can you get away?”

      “I have one full-time assistant and someone who helps part-time. Let me check with them. If they can both work, I’ll take the day off.”

      The twins had finished their cones now, too, and were jabbing each other with sticky fingers, squealing and jumping from their chairs to play tag around the table.

      “Okay. It’s time to put a lid on it,” Jake announced. He motioned to the truck. “Let’s move on out. Don’t touch anything until I wipe your hands.”

      Without the complaining Tori expected, Ricky and Ryan looked up at their uncle, then raced to his truck.

      Jake’s expression was affectionately patient.