Maggie and flung herself at Brady. A stab of jealousy hit Maggie hard. She’d always been the one to comfort Amber. The one Amber clung to when she needed a good cry. The one Amber relied on to keep her safe.
And now Brady was hogging her glory. Not that she wanted Amber to have bad dreams. She just wanted to be the one her daughter wanted to comfort her.
“What happened to your shirt?” Amber asked. She snuggled up to Brady the same way she always snuggled with Maggie.
“Your mom was cold.” Brady glanced Maggie’s way. How could she begrudge him this when he looked so damned happy?
“That was nice of you.” Amber pulled away and smooshed Brady’s face between her hands, forcing him to look at her. “Would you stay and sleep with Mommy and me?”
“Of course.” Brady didn’t hesitate for a moment.
What the hell was going on in her life? First she about had sex with Brady and now she was about to climb in bed with him and their daughter? This was too weird.
Amber grabbed both their hands and led them to the bed. She climbed in and under the covers. “Mommy on this side and Daddy over here.”
Not an ounce of the heat from before was in the look Brady gave her. It was questioning and tender. Almost as if he was giving her a choice. Oh, sure, Amber would blame her for driving Brady away.
Maggie shrugged and grabbed a pair of pajama bottoms from her dresser. After pulling them on, she climbed into bed with Amber.
“I don’t even get my shirt back?” Brady smiled.
“I’m still cold.” Maggie snuggled deeper under the covers. That, and it smelled like him. “If you aren’t going to be comfortable, you could always go home.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” He sat on the edge of the bed and took off his socks, but kept his jeans on. He lay on top of the covers, put his arms under his head and crossed his ankles.
“I’m glad you’re my daddy,” Amber whispered.
“Me, too,” Brady whispered back.
Maggie reached over and shut off the lamp. As she lay wide-awake in the darkened room listening to the rustles and breathing of Amber and Brady, all the thoughts she’d put to the side while Brady had been kissing her rushed forward. But one question spoke louder than any of the others.
What if Brady wanted to be with Maggie because of Amber? All his charm and kisses were only to stay close to his daughter?
She felt a brush of his fingertips on her shoulder and tried to relax so he thought she’d fallen asleep. He wouldn’t even be in her life now if it weren’t for Amber.
Well, his charm and kisses wouldn’t work on Maggie. She didn’t need a man in her life and definitely not Brady Ward. She wanted a man who was in love with her for who she was. Besides, it wasn’t as if she were already half in love with the guy.
His hand slipped away and immediately she missed his touch. Oh, for Pete’s sake, she was better than this. Falling in love with the father of her child. Ha! Impossible because he lived in New York and she lived here. He was high class and champagne dreams. She was barbecue and beer.
Even if the chemistry was explosive, that kind of thing never lasted. Before long he’d resent her for holding him back. Especially since he didn’t love her. Her heart throbbed and a warm well of tears choked the back of her throat.
He would never love her. Could she ever know if he really loved her? He would convince himself that it was the right thing to do. To love the mother of his child.
She drew in a shaky breath to keep from crying because she knew without a doubt that if she hadn’t loved him before, she definitely loved Brady Ward now. And she couldn’t do a damned thing about it.
Last night, this wasn’t the way Brady had planned to wake up with Maggie. He stared across the bed and the tangle of dark hair at Maggie sleeping on the other side of Amber.
Her light honey hair spread over the pillow. The constant tension in her face had gone soft in sleep. He’d hoped they could ease some of the tension between them last night. The sexual tension had been building since New York and the only way to discharge it was to have sex. It was only natural.
It didn’t help that she constantly battled him at every turn. Challenged him about his way of life. Stole his phone. Made him someone’s daddy.
Instead of finally succumbing to the spark that hadn’t died since they were younger, they’d ended up with Amber taking the middle of Maggie’s queen-size bed. He’d never been kicked so much in his life, and he couldn’t help but smile because of it.
The morning sun drifted in between the curtains and fell across Maggie’s and Amber’s faces. Amber had wanted her daddy to comfort her last night. Her heart had beat like a scared rabbit’s against his. He’d forgotten to ask what her nightmare had been about. Wasn’t even sure if he should ask.
Now she slept as beautifully as her mom. Even though Amber had his coloring, she had her mother’s features. His heart was going to burst out of his chest. It almost felt as if they were a family.
What would it be like to have them with him? The thought startled him, but it had been in his mind all day yesterday. He had to return to New York and work. That’s where his life was. But why couldn’t he take them with him? Both of them.
Not just a week or two in the summer or a weekend a month, but forever. Maggie’s nose crinkled in her sleep. Amber threw her arm across Maggie. Surely Maggie would see that they were better as a family. With Maggie there, he’d know someone was taking care of Amber while he worked.
It’s not as if there was anything holding them to Tawnee Valley. Maybe the house, but Maggie’s mom was gone. His brother lived there, but Sam wasn’t exactly their favorite person.
Maggie stretched. Slowly her eyes opened and focused on him.
“Morning,” he whispered.
She gave him a sleepy smile and stretched again. His shirt tightened against her body, giving him an image to dream about. If she noticed his interest, she didn’t give it away as she rolled out of bed, careful not to disturb Amber.
Before he had a chance to say anything more, she was out the door.
“Do you like my mommy?”
Brady looked into Amber’s wide-awake face. “Yeah, I like your mommy.”
“Then why did you leave her?” Such a simple question but he didn’t have a good answer to it.
His mouth opened as he thought of saying one thing, but then he closed it. He’d left because he needed to put his past behind him. He’d left to forget about a little town called Tawnee Valley where his parents had raised him and where they had died, leaving him and his brothers alone. He hadn’t planned on leaving Maggie because she hadn’t
