A Baby by Christmas. Linda Warren

      

      “It’s our first Christmas together.”

      “Our first Christmas,” Elise repeated as they touched their glasses together. They sat for a while, just enjoying the moment and this quiet time together, but Elise had to tell Jake how she felt or she thought she’d burst.

      “I saw the cradle,” she said quietly. “It’s beautiful. I can’t believe you ordered it.”

      He swirled the wine in his glass and leaned back on his elbow. “I didn’t.”

      “Sure you did. I saw it.”

      “I made the cradle.”

      “What?”

      “I made the cradle,” he repeated.

      “Oh, Jake, why?”

      “Because I wanted a baby, too.”

      Silence followed his words and Elise knew he wasn’t telling her his true feelings. “There’s another reason, isn’t there?”

      The words were in his throat, but he couldn’t force them out. He’d waited for this moment forever, but fear kept him silent, kept him prisoner, kept him chained to the past. He found it hard to express something he felt so intensely, especially since his ghost was always there.

      Elise took a breath. “Say it, Jake.”

      Dear Reader,

      A Baby by Christmas is the story of a couple, Jake and Elise McCain, who get married for the wrong reason—to have a baby. Their plans begin to unravel when they discover Jake already has a child by another woman. The book is about how two people struggle with this situation, how they learn to cope and, most important, how they find love. It’s also about a special little boy named Ben who changes their lives.

      This book is a little different than my others, but I hope you will enjoy it no less. May the Christmas season embrace you and your families as you journey with Jake and Elise to find the true meaning of love.

      Happy holidays,

      Linda Warren

      You can reach me at [email protected], superauthors.com, or visit my Web site www.lindawarren.net, or you can write me at P.O. Box 5182, Bryan, TX 77805. Your letter will always be answered.

      A Baby by Christmas

      Linda Warren

      DEDICATION

      This book is about a special little boy, so I dedicate it to the special little boys (the great ones) in my life:

      John Fuller, Matt Fuller, Jake Fuller, Josh Rychlik, Tyler Phillips, Layne Tharp, Scott Patranella and Taylor Siegert.

      And to Ty Siegert, a special nephew, who never fails to ask about my books.

      CONTENTS

      CHAPTER ONE

      CHAPTER TWO

      CHAPTER THREE

      CHAPTER FOUR

      CHAPTER FIVE

      CHAPTER SIX

      CHAPTER SEVEN

      CHAPTER EIGHT

      CHAPTER NINE

      CHAPTER TEN

      CHAPTER ELEVEN

      CHAPTER TWELVE

      CHAPTER THIRTEEN

      CHAPTER FOURTEEN

      CHAPTER FIFTEEN

      CHAPTER SIXTEEN

      CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

      CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

      EPILOGUE

      CHAPTER ONE

      A BABY. A BABY. A BABY.

      The words resounded in Jake McCain’s head as he entered the house. He stopped and took a deep breath. Damn, he hated this. It ruined his whole workday. Then why was he here? Because he didn’t hate it. It was just so…hell, he couldn’t explain it to himself. Elise had called and he’d come running. Ever since he’d met her he seemed to be jumping through hoops. At times it irked him, like today; at others he found it quite enjoyable. That was the problem with their relationship, their marriage—he never knew what the hell was going to happen next. But he’d signed on for better or worse…and a baby.

      “Jake, is that you?”

      “Yes,” he shouted from the kitchen.

      “I’m in the bedroom.”

      Where else would she be? he thought with resignation. He made his way to the living room and paused for a moment. The room was completely white with touches of silver and mauve. There wasn’t a comfortable chair anywhere, and after a long day he needed a place to relax other than the bedroom. Everything in there was white, too, but he had ways of blocking it out. Why he’d let Elise convince him to live here he had no idea. She could make him do the impossible, though, even live in the city among these houses all crowded together. He was beginning to think she had him under a spell, because he wasn’t acting like himself.

      He needed to tell her how he felt.

      ELISE WEBER MCCAIN SLIPPED out of her suit and under-clothes and reached for a silk robe. She didn’t bother with a gown. She didn’t need one—all she needed was Jake and his sperm. They’d been married for six months and they were trying for a baby. That was the reason they’d gotten married; they were two people who wanted the same thing—a child.

      At thirty-five, Elise had been certain she’d never fall in love again. Ten years ago, after a year of marriage, she’d lost the love of her life, Derek Weber, in a plane crash. Heartbroken, she sank into depression, then eventually picked herself up and went back to school and got her Ph.D. Now she was a professor of American literature and had the respect of her peers. In her professional life everything was perfect, but her personal life had been nonexistent—until she met Jake.

      It had happened unexpectedly. She was traveling home to Waco, Texas, from a lecture at Rice University when she got a flat tire between Marlin and Waco. It was almost dark and she was in the middle of nowhere. She’d taken out her cell phone to call for assistance when a truck pulled up. She was nervous about a stranger stopping to help her, but as soon as the man, who was tall with strong, chiseled features, introduced himself, her fears vanished. She was acquainted with Jake’s mother and his brothers and stepfather. They belonged to the same country club as Elise and her family, and Elise had heard of Jake’s estrangement from his mother. Althea had left her husband for another man; her ten-year-old son, Jake, wouldn’t go with her, so he’d stayed with his father. After that, Althea had had little contact with Jake and Elise knew that troubled her a great deal. She’d heard Althea talk about him for years and it was an odd twist of fate that he’d stopped to help her…or maybe it was meant to be.

      Elise didn’t find Jake’s brothers as interesting as Jake. He was kind, honest, forthright. Not that his brothers weren’t, but with Jake it was different. She couldn’t explain it. She was only aware that she felt drawn to him in a way she hadn’t experienced in a long time.

      When she’d tried to pay him for fixing her flat, he’d refused. The next week she’d phoned and invited him to dinner as a thank you. Why she’d done that, she had no idea. Asking a man out was so unlike her, but she’d wanted him to know how much she’d appreciated his kindness. To her delight, he accepted.

      Her mother and sister were appalled at her actions. They’d told her Jake McCain wasn’t their kind and that Althea’s other sons were more suitable. She’d ignored them. Her mother and sister were snobs and she’d struggled with their attitudes all her life.

      Elise had enjoyed that first date. They’d discussed all kinds