Dr. White's Baby Wish (8 page)

‘Where are you going?' Gemma asked as she stood up.

‘Need my sun hat and some more sunscreen.' And to put distance between herself and that man turning her carefully organised world upside down, inside out.

* * *

Cody heaved the ball at the wickets and missed, which won him growls from the kids and applause from the women. All the women except Harper, who seemed intent on something on the grass she was crossing, going towards the house.

What was up? Moments ago she'd been yakking with her sisters and watching his every move.
Nearly every move. Don't get big-headed.

‘Catch it, Cody,' Jason yelled.

Hell, now he was day-dreaming. Not a good look, especially amongst this lot. Leaping high, he missed the ball. Again.

Levi sidled up to him. ‘You said you could play.'

‘Sorry, buddy. I wasn't concentrating. I'll do better from now on, okay?' He held his hand up to high-five the youngster.

The kid grinned and slapped his hand. ‘You going to take some of us for a ride later?'

He should've parked around the corner and walked here. He'd known there were kids here—what boy didn't want to ride a motorbike sometimes? Not that he minded giving each one of the brat pack a short ride but there were a lot of parents, and even grandparents, who might object for safety reasons. ‘We'll talk about it later.'

Of course, Levi wouldn't let him get away with that. ‘As soon as the cricket's finished?'

‘It might be too late. Isn't there going to be a barbecue then?'

‘There'll be time. I'm first.'

Cody nudged him. ‘Your turn to bat. And I haven't said I'm taking you or any of the others for a ride yet. I have to talk to your folks.'

No one objected as long as helmets were worn, trousers replaced shorts and Cody only drove them around the park at the end of the street.

‘Only if I get a ride afterwards.' Jason nodded. ‘I'm the birthday boy, after all.'

‘You want to ride passenger or take the bike off on your own?' Cody asked, not knowing if the guy knew how to ride.

‘I'll leave you in control, and promise not to hug you too tight,' he smirked. Then he turned to the women. ‘Any of you want a turn too? Gemma?'

‘Of course I do.'

Cody groaned. That barbecue was going to be hours away at this rate. ‘We'd better get started.'

His new friend, Levi, called, ‘Grandma, do you want a turn?'

‘An enormous motorbike and a good-looking man going begging? Of course I do.'

Harper chuckled beside him. ‘Relax, Cody. She hates sitting in a car when anyone else is driving. You're safe.'

Everyone laughed, and Cody shook his head. Then made a mistake. ‘You going to give it a whirl, Harper?'

She was going to say no. He could see it in the set of her mouth, the slightly darker gleam in her eyes and the tightening of her body.

‘Don't wuss out, Harper,' Jason called. ‘You've always wanted to be a biker's girl.'

Annoyance flared on that beautiful face, but she locked her eyes with his and nodded. ‘Take me to Eastbourne and back.'

‘I'll do better than that.'
Shut up, Cody.
‘I'll take you home at the end of the day.'

‘I've got my car here.' She was looking stunned that she'd even agreed to go in the first place.

‘I'll drop it off at the hospital tomorrow when I go for my scan,' Suzanne said.

‘Scan?' Shock froze on Harper's face. Around them, everyone else was yelling and jumping up and down.

‘You're pregnant? Yippee' was the general chorus.

‘We were going to tell you all next weekend, since this is Jason's birthday, but it sort of slipped out.' A pink-faced Suzanne leaned into the man who'd just draped his arm over her shoulders. ‘We've been waiting until the first twelve weeks were up before saying a word. It's been so hard to keep quiet.'

‘Especially for you.' Noah was the first to give his sister a hug and shake his brother-in-law's hand.

Harper still appeared shell-shocked. Didn't she want any more nieces and nephews? No, Cody decided, there was more to her reaction than that. That'd be petty and, as far as he'd seen, Harper didn't do petty. He moved closer to her, not touching, but there for her.

Jason was watching Harper and nodded when he saw what Cody had done.

So what was her problem? When Harper took her turn to hug her sister, she struggled to let go and seemed to hold tighter, harder, longer than anyone else. Did she want a baby too? Was she jealous of her sister—when she didn't have a man in her life? But then he didn't know if there was or wasn't a partner somewhere. Just because she'd come alone to her brother's party didn't mean there wasn't a man out there who was Harper's other half. A very absent other half. Except she seemed taken with
him
at times. Now he was really confused.

‘It's going to be fine.' Suzanne rubbed Harper's back and looked helplessly over her shoulder to her brothers.

Jason grabbed Noah as he made to take Harper's arm. ‘Let's get the kids back playing cricket for a bit longer. Harper's going for a ride on that Harley.'

Cody got the message loud and clear, even if Harper hadn't. When he turned her towards his bike she hesitated and glanced up at him, and then across to her brother.

Jason nodded once. ‘Go blow some cobwebs out of your head, sis, and then Cody can be driven crazy by giving all these kids a short spin around the park.'

Suzanne caught Harper's hand. ‘Go on, get out of here for a bit. I'm sorry how I blurted it out, but it's been hard holding it back. It's so exciting, and—' She bit off whatever else she'd been going to say.

Harper wrapped her arms around her sister. ‘Don't you dare be sorry. It's wonderful news. Really and truly. I'm happy for you both.'

Cody brought the spare helmet across and handed it to her. When she quickly placed it on her head and began fumbling with the straps, he knew she was desperate to get away for a while. ‘Let me.' He took the straps and did them up tight enough to keep the helmet in place, but not so tight that her skin was scrunched, or made that still-tender throat uncomfortable. Her warm, soft skin was velvet against his fingers.

‘Put these on.' Gemma handed over a jacket and some track pants to Harper. ‘You'll freeze otherwise.'

‘Where shall we go?' she asked quietly, her mind obviously still absorbing her sister's news.

‘Wait and see.' He shucked into his jacket, hauled his leather trousers over his shorts, then straddled the bike and waited for her to climb up behind him, before roaring the engine into life.

‘Hold on tight,' he said over his shoulder, and then drew a sharp breath when she wound her arms around him and laid her face against his back. He'd taken many people for rides on his bike over the years, quite a few of them women, but not once had he experienced the heat and longing from a pair of arms around his upper body and a face lying tucked in against him as was pouring through him this minute. He mightn't want Harper White to be anyone special, but he sure as hell seemed to be having trouble keeping her on the same uninvolved level as any other woman he'd known since Sadie.

This was going to be a long ride, even if he only took her to the end of the road—all of three hundred metres. Suddenly he was afraid. Afraid that Harper was sneaking in under his radar, touching him in ways he'd never thought to know again. That couldn't happen.

‘We going today?' The sharp question came near his ear and had him revving the engine louder and faster than he'd normally do.

‘Sure thing, doctor,' he muttered, knowing she'd never hear him over the bike noise.

He took her through the township of Eastbourne and on toward Pencarrow Head, until they were alone apart from the seagulls and the wild shoreline, and then stopped the bike. ‘Let's stroll along the water's edge,' he suggested as the roar of the engine died. He needed a break from those arms still encircling him before he did something they'd both regret. Kissing came to mind. Along with touching.

‘I'd like that.'

She was talking about the walk, right? He turned on the seat and stared at her, sure his thoughts were easy to read and still unable to look away.

Harper sprang off the bike fast, as though she also wanted space between them. ‘Do I leave the helmet with the bike? Or would it be best to carry it in case someone comes along?'

Cody shook his head. ‘I doubt anyone with bad intentions will turn up in the next half hour.'

She slipped the helmet onto the handle bar. ‘You can say that even after what happened on Friday? We never saw Strong coming.'

Of course she was still shaken by that. It'd have been more surprising if she wasn't. ‘I'll take a chance on our helmets being here when we get back.'

Harper clambered over rocks to reach the sand, the breeze lifting her hair behind her. Long, shiny hair that made him ache to finger-comb it, made his manhood throb with need.

Damn it, he should never have visited the White family in the first place. Should've gone to visit his mother instead. But he'd taken his mother out to lunch yesterday and had learned she was unwell with a summer cold. The rest-home nurses thought she'd be better tucked up in bed today without visitors. He'd wanted to argue but had given in to the idea of joining Harper's family for the afternoon.

He ambled along behind Harper, drinking in the sight of her firm legs and gently swaying buttocks, wishing he'd followed through on that urge to kiss her, no matter the consequences.

He caught up with her when she paused to watch the inter-island ferry make its way between Pencarrow and Palmer Heads on its way to the South Island.

‘I can't have children.' She continued staring across the water to the boat. ‘But you probably already figured that out.'

He took her hand and began walking farther along the stony beach. ‘No, I hadn't got to that answer yet.' He'd deliberately stopped thinking about her reaction to her sister's news the moment Jason had suggested he take her for a ride. He hadn't wanted to dwell on what he doubted he'd learn the answer to—not today, anyway. Who'd have thought Harper would just out and tell him? ‘I can see why your sister's news upset you.'

‘It shouldn't. I've had loads of experience of dealing with being told one of my family's having a baby, so I know how not to react.' Her fingers tightened around his as she spoke, and Cody wondered if she even realised they were holding hands.

He should let go. He'd only taken her hand as a comfort gesture and to move her on along the beach, yet he did not want to pull away. The warmth from her palm against his, the softness of those fingers interlaced with his, was the most wonderful sensation he'd known in a long time. So ordinary and yet so thrilling. Damn but he was turning into a softie.

Harper was still talking, as though getting something off her chest. ‘I'm the godmother to every one of the brat pack.' She flicked him a quick look and he knew she hadn't finished.

But he also had something to say. ‘No surprise there,' he told her before adding, ‘They adore you, if what I've seen so far is anything to go by.'

‘Chocolate and doing fun things will always get me that.' She smiled softly. Bending down, she picked up a handful of sand and let it dribble through her fingers as they walked, while her other hand still firmly held his. ‘But being an aunt, even the best one out, doesn't take the place of raising my own children. Having my own babies.' Her sigh was so sad, Cody's heart clenched. ‘I thought I had a chance to be a mum once, but the plans got changed.'

‘I can't imagine what it must be like for you.' He couldn't. It was something he'd never considered, instead always believing that one day he'd have a family, teach his son to fish, or even his daughter, for that matter. But never to have his own child? Unimaginable. No wonder Harper had looked gutted when her sister had blurted out her news. No wonder Suzanne had been upset about how she'd spilled the beans. But then there'd have been no easy way to tell Harper.

‘I guess no one thinks about it unless faced with the fact. I certainly didn't. Or maybe I was fooling myself, hiding from the truth. Coming from a largish family who all seem intent on doubling the world's population, the idea I couldn't contribute was implausible.'

He would've laughed at her attempt to lighten the mood but he was all out of laughs at the moment. This was something big, something that would've changed Harper's life. He had this inexplicable urge to make her feel better, but there was no way he could do that. This went deep, was very personal. It was surprising that she'd even shared it with him. What would she do if he gave her a hug? It wouldn't be quite like the hugs she got from her family. No way could he do platonic with this woman. Not any more, if he'd been able to at all. ‘Can I ask why you can't have children?'

Her silence told him he'd gone too far. Fair enough. He'd known that the moment the words fell out, but she'd been so forthcoming up until now, he hadn't stopped to consider how much he could ask. Now she'd be wanting to head back to Lowry Bay and telling him to carry on to the city alone.

He resumed walking, back in the direction of his bike.

‘I was born without a womb.'

Cody paused and turned slowly, so as not to make her suddenly change her mind about talking to him.

Harper sank to her haunches, scooped up more sand and watched it dribble back to the ground. ‘It wasn't picked up until my teens. I mean, why would it be?'

He dropped down beside her and took her hand again. ‘Bloody hell, Harper. What were the odds, eh?' His heart was pounding at the thought of what it must've been like for her to find out.

‘Higher than you'd think.' She sat down and wound her arms around her legs, resting her chin on top of her knees. ‘I should remember that on days like today. I'm not the only one.'