A Family Under the Christmas Tree (12 page)

“Of course.” The words were stiff against his tongue.

“If you want to bring Troy over around ten tomorrow morning, he can have lunch with us.”

Her generosity touched him. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

He covered her hand with his. Her hand was warm and soft and it took everything in him not to pull her closer. “Thank you. I'm sure he'd like that.” He let go and ushered Troy home before he gave in to the attraction tugging at him.

After dinner and a bath, David sat on Troy's bed with Troy leaning against his side, his small head resting against his chest. Though David hated to let go of the moment, he closed the fifteenth book he'd read and said, “Okay, buddy. That's it for tonight. I'm storied out.”

A sleepy Troy scooted down beneath the covers and laid his head on the pillow. “Will you pray? My daddy used to pray with me at bedtime.”

David's heart squeezed tight. This was the first time Troy had made this request. David should have thought of it. Of course Daniel had prayed. He'd always been faithful to God, even when life was spinning out of control.

David's faith was more hit or miss. He slid to his knees beside the bed and folded Troy's tiny hands in his. “Dear Lord, thank you for this day. Thank you for our new friends, Louise and Sophie.
Thank you for Troy. Please watch over us as we sleep and as we go about our days. Amen.”

Troy tightened his hold on David's hand. “Sophie's pretty, isn't she, Uncle David?”

Biting back a smile in the face of Troy's solemn eyes, David nodded. “Yes. Very pretty.”

“Do you like her?”

Wary of where this was going, he replied, “Yes. She's a very nice lady.”

Troy nodded, seeming satisfied with the answer.

“Troy, Sophie's only in town for a short time to visit her grandma,” he said, needing to make sure his nephew understood that Sophie wasn't a permanent fixture in their lives. “She'll be leaving soon.”

“Leaving? Where will she go?”

“Far away.”

Troy's lip poked out. “Oh. Why?”

“Her job takes her all over the world.”

Troy seemed to be digesting the information. Then he asked, “Your job won't take you all over the world, will it?”

“No. And if it did I'd take you with me.” He kissed Troy on the forehead. “Good night, buddy.”

Troy rolled to his side. “Good night. Sleep well. I love you, Uncle David.”

Tenderness filled his chest. “I love you too, buddy.”

Oh, Daniel. We miss you so much.
David had let a singular focus on work keep him from Daniel for too long and now he was gone. But Daniel's legacy lived on in Troy.

With a heavy heart, David left Troy's room and headed back to his makeshift desk at the dining room table. He hoped to get some work done before Troy had a nightmare and required his
attention. Before he could delve into the work and lose himself, his cell phone buzzed with an incoming text. Sophie. Asking if he was up. She was outside his house and wanted to talk.

His pulse sped up. He wanted to see her. Needed to see her for reasons he didn't fully understand. And that scared him more than he wanted to admit.

S
ophie tightened her hold on Riggs's leash. He sniffed the bushes around David's porch while she waited to see if David would respond to her text. She stomped her feet softly to keep warm. A chill seeped through her raincoat. She wasn't sure what madness had prompted her to send the text in the first place. It was obvious something had been bothering David today when he'd arrived at Grandma's to pick up Troy.

She hoped she hadn't overstepped again. She hadn't touched his house today, but she hadn't needed to. They'd kept it tidy. She was so proud of Troy for returning his toys to his new chest like they'd talked about.

She was surprised and a bit wary by the amount of pride she felt, because she wasn't parent material. She was wandering into dangerous territory here. Everything she'd suggested had been tricks and tips she'd learned from the parade of nannies who'd come and gone from her life.

The shopping trip with Troy had been a pleasant experience, which surprised her. Not that she'd expected it to be a disaster, but she hadn't thought it would go so smoothly. She'd been afraid he'd want her to buy him things when the purpose of the trip had been to find gifts for underprivileged children.

He'd seemed to understand and been very thoughtful in picking toys and warm clothing items for both girls and boys between the ages of two and ten. He'd really considered each present and never once asked for something for himself. Though she did manage to slip in a couple of superhero action figures that he'd said were his favorites without him seeing.

She'd been so happy with his behavior she'd offered to buy him candy as they were checking out and he'd picked out a kind he'd said his uncle liked. Such a thoughtful kid.

She wished she'd known his parents. They'd done a good job in such a short time of instilling compassion and generosity into their son.

When she and Troy returned with their bounty, they'd spent the rest of the time at Grandma's. She was almost sad that tomorrow would be the last day she'd have alone with Troy since David was taking the rest of the next two weeks off.

Sad because she was going to miss hanging out with Troy. He was such a delight. Yes, he could be a bit of a handful, testing boundaries and struggling with self-control, but he was also a good kid with a good heart.

And she'd miss seeing David dressed for the office. She had to admit he'd looked handsome in his suit. She'd liked the gray suit yesterday. But today he'd had on a navy pinstripe with a light-blue button-down shirt and red-and-navy-striped tie that had made him look powerful and confident. She wondered if he wore a suit every day he went into the office or just the days when he
had meetings. He was such an interesting man. Charming and friendly at times, then stoic, almost brooding. It was confusing and intriguing at once.

But she didn't need the confusion in her life. And she refused to allow the intriguing notion to take root. Her goal was to get Grandma on her feet again and then take off. She had a really exciting job lined up. One that could set her up for a long time. She needed to keep her focus on the future.

A shiver worked its way over her. The weather was chilly, but thankfully wasn't raining right now. The neighborhood was quiet, but festive with twinkling lights on the houses. Except for David's. He hadn't put up lights. She wondered why. He'd so generously put up Grandma's lights, why not hang any on his own house? Maybe he would over the weekend.

As the seconds ticked by, she debated walking away. She could talk to David tomorrow or Saturday, when they went Christmas tree shopping. She'd almost forgotten about the planned excursion. Yes, she should wait until then instead of standing here on his porch like a stalker. She turned to go as David's front door swung wide and he walked out onto the porch. He pulled the door but left a slight crack, no doubt in case Troy called out to him.

The warm, yellow glow of the porch light revealed the bright shine in his gray eyes. He'd changed into jeans and a pullover hoodie. A five o'clock shadow darkened his jawline. He looked different from the professional man from earlier, but just as powerfully handsome. A quiver of attraction shot through her.

She inhaled deeply, catching a whiff of his cologne, a musky masculine scent that made her want to nuzzle close to him. She stayed rooted to the porch at arm's distance away. Safer that way. For her piece of mind.

“Hey,” he
said and bent to rub Riggs behind the ears.

Was his greeting directed at her or the dog? She found herself tongue-tied as she watched him giving the puppy so much affection. She wanted to be on the receiving end of that affection. Her pulse raced.

She'd made a mistake by asking him to come out. Drawing him onto the porch where it was just the two of them sent longing winding through her. She should have just kept on walking and let things stay the way they were. But she wasn't one to ignore her curiosity. He'd been upset, and if she'd done something to offend, she needed it brought to light so she could apologize and they could move on.

David straightened. “It's a nice night for a walk.”

“It is.” She fiddled with the leash, working up the nerve to broach the subject of his obvious upset. “Hey, so, I had the distinct impression you were bothered by something when you picked up Troy today. Did I do anything to offend you again?”

He groaned. “No. Of course not. It isn't you. It's me.”

“That sounds like a breakup line.”

His eyes widened. “I'm not—I mean, what?”

“Nothing,” she mumbled, embarrassed by her choice of words. They weren't dating, so he couldn't break up with her. Though the idea of dating David latched onto her mind.

What would it be like to spend time alone with him, away from kids, dogs, and grandmas?

She gave herself a mental shake. Not going to happen. Dating wasn't on her agenda while in Washington. She was leaving to further her career, and nothing was going to stand in the way. Certainly not a man. No matter how handsome or how much he made her heart flutter. “So what's going on? I promise, I'm a good listener.”

“I'm sure you are.”
He jammed his hands into his pockets. Riggs lay down, putting his paws on David's foot. They shared a smile.

“I really appreciate how well you're taking care of Troy,” David said. “He's become very fond of you and Louise. It's great for him to have stability after suffering so much loss.”

His words slipped between her ribs with swift and lethal accuracy. They both knew she was leaving and what it would do to Troy when she did. Her stomach roiled. “We're fond of him, too.”

“When do you leave again?”

The pointed question lanced her heart. She sighed. “I've told you. After New Year's.”

“Right.”

He still hadn't answered her question. She debated letting it go. She had no reason to pry, especially if she wanted to keep from becoming too attached, too involved with him.

But there was something about David that called to her. Something that made her believe he carried a heavy burden beyond the obvious one of sudden parenthood and a growing company. And she wanted to know what it was, and despite knowing she shouldn't, she wanted to help. Her brothers would say she was meddling.

She could almost see her middle brother, Dean, wagging a finger at her, saying,
“Sis, you think you're helping but you're only making things worse with your meddling. Stay out of other people's business
.” Meaning
his
business. Though her other two brothers shared the sentiment.

What would David think? Would he resent her for offering her support? Only one way to find out. “You can talk to me. I won't judge.”

David studied the pretty lady standing on his porch. Though the wall sconce created shadows that played across her face, he could see her earnest expression. Her blue eyes held his gaze. She had such a good heart. A giving heart. She wanted him to talk to her about what had him upset this afternoon. But he had a feeling her request came because she saw him as a project. Someone who needed to be fixed. How many times had others stepped into his life with the same agenda? Too many for him to count.

He didn't take handouts, nor did he want to be anyone's good deed. Not even a beautiful and compassionate woman such as Sophie. “You won't judge, huh?”

“No, I won't.”

“Good to know.”

Her eyebrows pinched together. “Did something happen at your office?”

She was tenacious, he'd give her that. “No. Everything there is going well. My staff is prepared for me to take some time off.” He grinned. “In fact, we're closing the office on the twenty-third.”

Her influence on him. While he'd been making plans to take time away from the office, it had occurred to him that very few of his employees had taken vacation days. A few sick days here and there, but his staff was loyal and hardworking. And they deserved a reward for their dedication. “I figured we could all use a few days away from work. Paid, of course.”