Baby's First Christmas. Cathy Thacker Gillen

the back. “If you need me, don’t hesitate to give me a buzz. And I’ll be up to check on you and Timmy on my breaks. That is—” he hesitated “—if it’s okay.”

      It’s more than okay, Kate thought. “I want you to be close to your son.” She wanted Timmy to have a dad. She wanted him to have Michael in his life. Not just for now, but for all the years he was growing up.

      Without warning, Michael closed the distance between them all the way. He took her face in his hands and lowered his mouth to hers. Kate closed her eyes, anticipating the touch of his lips, the sweet soulfulness of a kiss that had been brewing for what now seemed a lifetime, and that was when they heard a pair of rapid footsteps screech to a halt and a very adult gasp of surprise behind them.

      Reacting as if they’d been hit by a live wire, Kate and Michael broke apart and glanced automatically in the direction of the intrusion. A flush of embarrassment heating her cheeks, Kate looked at the fifty-something couple standing there. She’d never seen either of them before, but they looked familiar to her nevertheless. The woman had a head of thick, straight sable brown hair—like Michael’s—and was wearing a slim denim dress, cardigan sweater and flat shoes. The man had cropped salt-and-pepper hair. He was wearing a casual tweed sport coat, coordinating shirt and tie and slacks and had an air of gentleness about him.

      “When we heard,” the woman began softly, pressing a hand to her heart.

      “We didn’t believe it,” the man said for her.

      “Michael!” The attractive woman propped her hands on her hips and demanded, “Why didn’t you tell us?”

      IF THIS WASN’T a disaster in the making, Michael didn’t know what was.

      “We didn’t even know you were dating this young woman!” Michael’s dad said.

      That was because Michael had felt they had enough complications with just Kate’s family in the picture at the moment. But there was no helping it now. He strode forward amiably and brought his parents into the room.

      “Mom, Dad, I’d like you to meet Kate Montgomery and our son, Timmy. Kate, my mom, Ginny, and my dad, Hugh.”

      Kate greeted them both graciously. “Pleased to meet you.”

      “The feeling is mutual, believe me,” Hugh said gently, smiling at Kate and the baby before turning to his son. “Michael, I’m still waiting for an explanation.”

      “First, I want to know how you found out about this.” Michael gestured his parents to chairs and shut the door behind them.

      His mother looked hurt. “You aren’t the only one from Hickory who works at this hospital, remember? Tina Delaney is a nurse in oncology. She heard it from someone in radiology, who heard it from someone in the ER. She called her parents last night and told them, and they called to congratulate us.” Ginny flushed, looking both embarrassed and incensed. “And of course we had no idea what they were talking about, so we called the ER this morning to talk to you and were told you were with your new son, and they weren’t yet sure if you were coming in today or not.”

      Michael swore silently, though he could hardly blame the emergency room staff, who had no idea of his decision to delay telling his family.

      Hugh shot Michael a glance riddled with disappointment. “Why didn’t you tell us?” he demanded sternly. “We waited all last night for a call.”

      Noting Kate was looking pretty embarrassed and uncomfortable, Michael put his arm around Kate’s shoulders. “I wanted everything to be worked out first,” he told his parents. Briefly, Michael related finding out about the mix-up at the lab and the ordeal of Kate giving birth to their baby in the Gourmet Gifts To Go delivery van before the two of them had been given a chance to deal with the situation. “I didn’t want to call you until we knew how we were going to work all this out.”

      Michael’s parents sat facing them in stunned silence. A knock sounded on the door. But at least, Michael realized, they were no longer angry with him for what they would have seen as highly irresponsible behavior.

      “I didn’t really want to tell you anything unless I was going to be a part of the baby’s life,” Michael said as he went to open the door.

      “And are you going to be part of Timmy’s life?” Ginny Sloane asked her son point-blank, looking as if she were unable to think about the alternative.

      “That’s what we’d like to know,” Kate’s father said, as her parents unexpectedly walked in, one after the other, and joined the group.

      FOR A MOMENT, silence reigned. Then introductions were made all around and Kate’s father took the floor. “Look, I know having a baby is a very emotional and exciting time in a person’s life.” Ted sent Carolyn a poignant look that spoke volumes about how much his daughters’ births had meant to him before turning to Kate and Michael. “And there is nothing more romantic than bringing that first baby into the world. But I feel the two of you are acting way too swiftly and emotionally for your own good.” He opened his briefcase.

      “And to that end, it’s necessary for you both to protect your own interests, in a legal sense. So I’ve taken the liberty of having papers drawn up at my law firm this morning.”

      Afraid Timmy, who had fallen asleep in her arms, would feel her distress if she continued to hold him, Kate gently leaned over and put him in the bassinet.

      “This is a letter of agreement stating that Kate relinquishes all claims of financial support for herself and her son,” Ted continued as if this were the most logical thing in the world for them to be doing. “And though she clearly acknowledges Michael Sloane is—inadvertently—the father of her child,” he said with lawyerly ease, “Kate makes no demands on him, custodial or otherwise, as a parent, now or at any time in the future. In return, Michael will relinquish any and all rights to ever sue for custody of Timmy or make financial claims on Kate’s business or personal holdings.”

      Kate stared at her father, aware he couldn’t have done more to extinguish the flame of attraction between her and Michael had he thrown a bucket of ice water on them. Which was, she realized belatedly, clearly his intent. “I can’t believe you did this,” Kate gasped indignantly, feeling hurt and angry beyond measure.

      “Nor can I,” Ginny Sloane murmured, looking distraught as she lay a hand across her heart.

      “I second that,” Kate’s mother said, staring at her estranged husband as if she’d never seen him before.

      Ted held his ground. “You’ll all be grateful to me in the long run for taking care to protect both Kate and Michael from future legal action.”

      “I think if these two kids should be talking anything, they should be talking marriage,” Hugh Sloane said, “if only for a short while, for appearance’s sake. Who knows?” Michael’s dad continued optimistically. “Maybe things would work out.”

      For the past few hours, Kate had thought their future was ripe with possibilities—romantic and otherwise—too. But now, seeing the dissent among their families and her warring parents, she was less sure.

      “At least then,” Ginny Sloane concurred as she looked at Michael and Kate, “you’d be able to tell Timmy you two gave it a shot.” Ginny shrugged. “If it didn’t work, it didn’t work.” But clearly, Kate thought, the hope was that it would work.

      But she couldn’t force Michael into that. Any more than she would want anyone to force her into marriage because of something someone else decided. And having this baby had been all her idea. Michael had had no part of it until yesterday. “We’re not getting married just because of the baby,” Kate told Michael’s parents firmly.

      “Agreed,” Michael said, backing her up. “There’d have to be a lot more between Kate and I for us to even consider taking that step.”

      Not surprisingly, Kate noted, her parents looked abruptly relieved. “Then you won’t mind signing this document for