up a load and followed her. “I’ll do the dishes for you.”
She called back over her shoulder, “Do you even know how? “
He did. Sort of. It had been a while. Probably quite a few years, now that he thought about it. “You go sit down,” he told her.
She looked tired. And he’d been reminded of how tough the last few months must have been for her. He didn’t exactly feel guilty about her troubles, but he was willing to do the dishes for her.
To his surprise, she was finished fighting. She plopped herself down on the couch, pulled a pattered blanket over her bare legs and let him tackle the cleanup himself.
By the time he was finished, she’d fallen asleep right there on the worn striped sofa. It was nearly ten o’clock, and it was a long drive back for the three of them. They needed to get going.
He whispered her name, but she didn’t stir.
He reached out to shake her, but he didn’t have the heart.
Instead, he bundled her up with the blanket and carried her into her bedroom. Her feet were bare, and he caught himself gazing at her legs, the curve of her hip and her rounded breasts beneath the white tank top before he could bring himself to pull the quilt over her.
He could have easily left her there and headed home. He was certain she’d bring Amelia back to his place in the morning. But as he headed back down the hall, he found a small guest room, with a hard narrow bed, a white painted dresser and the ugliest gauzy curtains he’d ever seen. The blankets were scratchy, and the sheets were worn, but for some reason he couldn’t think of anywhere else he wanted to be.
Devin woke up in her own bed, disoriented because the sun was so high in the sky. Her first panicked thought was that something was wrong with Amelia.
But when she rushed to the baby’s room and found the crib empty, she feared that Lucas might have taken her. Then she quickly discounted that idea, shaking her head to clear it of sleep. The man couldn’t manage a multi-million dollar corporation if he was running for the border with a kidnapped baby.
Confused, and forcing herself to take a few breaths and stay calm, she headed for the living room.
It was empty.
But through the glass doors, down on the beach, she spotted Lucas, Lexi and Amelia. The two adults were perched on a log, while Amelia was digging her way through a pile of sand with a bright red shovel and bucket.
Lucas had stayed the night. And he’d let her sleep in.
For some reason, that knowledge nearly brought her to tears. It was silly. Everyone had some good qualities, and Lucas was no different. They drank wine last night. He probably didn’t want to drive home. He’d obviously slept here and woken up with Amelia, keeping her quiet so that Devin could sleep in for the first time in three months.
She sniffed and swiped a frustrated hand under her eye.
Good grief. It wasn’t as if the man had cured cancer.
She stumbled to the kitchen, found herself a mug and filled it with coffee, adding a heaping spoon of sugar. She was pretty sure Lexi must have brewed the coffee. Last night, Lucas had barely been able to figure out dish soap and hot water.
She pulled a light sweater over the T-shirt and shorts that she’d slept in and headed across the deck and down the long wooden staircase to the strip of lawn that ended at the sandy beach. Once there, she made her way toward Lexi and Lucas.
Amelia was the first to spot her, grinning and launching into a speedy crawl toward her. Lexi and Lucas both turned. They smiled in greeting, looking decidedly relaxed. Devin assumed Lexi’s gratitude for the catamaran incident had tempered her opinion of Lucas.
“Good sleep?” asked Lexi with a grin.
“What time is it?” Devin hadn’t thought to check. She knew she felt more rested than she had in months.
“Eleven,” said Lucas.
“Seriously?”
He nodded.
“You got up with Amelia?” It was a little disconcerting that Devin hadn’t heard them.
“Yes, I did.” He yawned. “About 4:00 a.m. Then she slept on my chest for a while, but I didn’t get much more sleep.”
Devin could barely believe it. “Did you change her diaper?”
“There were instructions on the package.” “He got it on backward,” Lexi elaborated. Devin came down on her knees beside them in the sand. “And you fed her? “
Lucas rolled his eyes. “Quit sounding so amazed.” “It is amazing.”
Amelia smacked her sandy hands against Devin’s bare thighs.
“I gave her some juice and some Cheerios, and then Lexi came by.”
“I really appreciate you letting me sleep in.” Including both Lucas and Lexi in the thank-you, Devin held her coffee mug over to the side and out of harm’s way. “I feel pretty great.”
“Lexi’s agreed to babysit for us,” said Lucas.
“I hear you two are going on a date,” said Lexi.
“It’s not a date,” Devin quickly corrected. Had she really agreed to go to the dance with him tomorrow night? What had she been thinking? “Lucas is trying to co-opt me with, I don’t know, fine food and a waltz around the dance floor, so that I won’t support Steve.”
Lucas turned to Lexi. “See what I mean?”
Lexi nodded her understanding.
“What?” Devin glanced back and forth between the two.
“He thinks you’re suspicious,” said Lexi.
“Of course I’m suspicious,” Devin retorted. “So are you. And we’re justified in our suspicions.” She looked back and forth again. “What exactly did I miss here?”
Lucas stood up from his perch on the log, brushing the sand from the back of the borrowed sweatpants. “I’ve got a meeting,” he told them. “And I think I’d better get home and change first.” His glance went to Devin. “See you there later?”
“Sure,” she answered. She should thank him again for letting her sleep. But for some reason she hesitated to show him too much gratitude. She didn’t want him to think she liked him. She didn’t. Well, she kind of did this morning. But it wasn’t anything permanent.
Everything suddenly seemed confusing.
He bent over and gave Amelia a little rub on the head, then gave them all a careless wave as he started back across the beach to the lawn and the staircase.
“Tell
