His-And-Hers Twins (12 page)

Shaking herself suddenly in horror, she stared at her drink and decided she should stick to water. She was losing her ever-loving mind!

“Are you busy Saturday night?” Ben asked.

Paige jerked her gaze back to Ben. “Uh, yeah, I have
plans,” she lied. Amelia and Derrick were getting ready to leave and she wanted to scoot out with them.

Ben squeezed her hand gently. “I'm skydiving next weekend if you want to come.”

“Um, I don't think so,” Paige hedged. Derrick waved and he and Amelia slipped down the aisle.

Ben caught her hand. “How about bungee jumping?”

“That's not really my thing.”

“Scuba diving?”

“I'm a little claustrophobic.”

“We could play tennis.”

“I've always had weak arm muscles.”

Ben studied his drink, swirling the liquid around. “We could see a movie.” He quirked an eyebrow. “That is, unless you're afraid of dark theaters and crowds? Or are you allergic to popcorn?”

Paige laughed at his teasing tone. “A movie might be nice. Just give me a call.” Then she grabbed her purse, said goodbye, and hurried out the door.

By the time she arrived home, the sun had faded to a distant sliver of orange and she'd convinced herself her dreams of marriage and a baby had only been a momentary lapse in sanity. She sat on her porch and worked on sketches of Amelia's wedding dress, then began designs for her final project. Derrick had said he'd be by at seven, and wanted her to help him check out another house.

The sound of an engine broke the peaceful quiet and Zeke pulled into his driveway. When he climbed from his van, he didn't even glance in her direction. A few minutes later, his mother drove up and the girls ran toward the house. Zeke met them in the front yard, tossing them both in the air with a hug. She heard them chattering and talking and laughing, then one of the girls called her name, and a wave of loneliness settled deep inside
her. Her stomach tightened into a knot and she had the strongest urge to join them, to be a part of their little family.

But Zeke shook his head at the girls and steered them into the house. He'd obviously gotten the message that she only wanted to be friends. He was going to leave her alone and keep the girls away, too. She should have been happy. Instead, her heart cracked a notch. Even though she'd been fighting the attraction, she realized she'd already partially fallen for Zeke. Darn it.

Why couldn't she have learned from the disaster with Eric?

 

Z
EKE TOSSED AND
turned all night and woke up feeling cranky and irritable the next morning. His mood had nothing to do with seeing Derrick pull into Paige's driveway the night before, he told himself. But he knew he was lying to himself. Today he had to face her. They were having another meeting to discuss the neighborhood watch program. For the first time in his life, he actually prayed for a medical emergency so he'd have a good excuse not to attend. The telephone rang and he lunged for it. He was shocked to hear his ex-wife's voice on the other end.

“Zeke, this is Renee.”

“Yeah?”

She paused. “I won't be able to make it to the States next week after all.”

He muttered a curse. “Renee, look, you know the girls are looking forward to your visit. They need to see you.”

“I realize that, but I simply can't come now. I have a chance to go to southern Italy for a month.”

“A month? So you won't be coming at all in June?”

“That's right. It just can't be helped,” Renee said as
if she expected him to understand. “I know the girls will be disappointed, but I'll send them a gift or something.”

“They don't want your gifts, Renee, they want to see you.”

“They'll love whatever I send them,” Renee said nonchalantly.

Zeke cursed silently, but the girls picked up the phone and he bit his tongue. Renee smoothed over the news about her delayed visit, but the twins' small voices wavered with disappointment. His ex was so utterly selfish it made his blood boil. And in spite of how his girls tried to hide their disappointment from their mother, he knew he'd have to deal with the fallout after Renee hung up.

He climbed from bed, then took great pains to make homemade pancakes, hoping to ease the tension over the phone call with a special breakfast. But the girls barely ate.

“Daddy, don't you want Mommy to come back?” August asked.

Zeke paused, a flapjack in his hand. “Well, sure I do.”

“You sounded mad,” Summer said, her eyes wide.

They'd obviously overheard more than he thought.

“'Cause we want her to come and stay foreber,” August said.

Zeke's heart clenched. He sat down and scooped them into this lap. “I know you do, and so do I.”

“Then you'll be nice to Mommy when she calls so she won't leabe again?”

How could he resist those pleading sweet eyes? He raised his hand and mimicked a Boy Scouts' pledge. “I can't promise she won't leave. But I'll do whatever I can to convince her to stay.”

Both girls hugged his neck and he squeezed his eyes shut, wishing he could make their dreams all come true.

They finally released him, but their chatter quickly turned to Paige. When they mentioned seeing her at the mall with two guys, his mood drastically declined. One of them definitely fit Derrick's description.

If Paige could date someone else, he should do the same. Let her have her career. He would find another woman. As the old saying went, there were lots of fish in the sea. And he'd find one who would love his daughters and him. Even if she didn't make his heart pound and the blood spin through his veins with excitement the way Paige did.

 

P
AIGE NOTICED
Zeke the moment he stepped into Mrs. Spivy's house. Their eyes locked momentarily, but he nodded briefly and glanced away, taking a chair beside Dannika. Great, the piranha of all women, Paige thought, feeling slighted that Zeke hadn't sought out her company.

Then again, why should he? She had written him off.

But Dannika definitely wasn't the motherly type; she'd have no idea how to take care of Summer and August. Not that Paige did, but heck, she would be better than the sex goddess. The mere idea of the leggy brunette all over Zeke disgusted her.

“We're growing more and more concerned about these break-ins,” Mrs. Spivy said, pulling her from her troubled thoughts. “Someone in the community has to have seen or heard something.”

“We don't want to point fingers,” Mr. Spivy said. “But we are concerned about someone else getting hurt.”

“The kids didn't make you fall, did they?” Bessie Rivers asked in horror.

Mr. Spivy shook his head. “No, but the house was so dark I tripped over the books they scattered on the floor.”

“The intruders might be someone who lives outside the neighborhood,” Paige suggested.

“But it's most likely someone we know,” Dannika interjected. “How else would the vandals know when people are home?”

“Good point,” Mr. Spivy added. “I realize a lot of the mothers in the neighborhood work. The kids are latchkey kids. They have a lot of time in the afternoon to peruse the neighborhood, to get into trouble when they're unsupervised.”

Paige's temper rose. Cynthia, a divorcée, spoke across the room. “I have to work to support my kids. That doesn't mean they're juvenile delinquents.”

“That's right,” Paige said in her defense. “I grew up with a working mom myself. I didn't go around breaking into people's homes. Someone else could be casing the houses.”

“But latchkey kids get into trouble more often than others,” Dannika said. “Don't you watch the news?”

“Teens are usually rebellious no matter what kind of home they come from,” Paige added, wondering if Dannika even liked children. Surely, Zeke would see through her flirtatious act and realize she wasn't kid-friendly.

A heated discussion followed. Finally Paige spoke up again. “It won't do any good for us to question one another. Let's all calm down.”

Zeke stood, his powerful masculinity radiating through the room as he took charge. “I agree. The important thing here is to discover who's behind the break-ins and teach safety awareness.” He and Paige worked to restore calm among the neighbors. Finally Paige excused herself and left the house, unsettled by the way Zeke kept watching her. And even more unsettled to see Dannika worming
her way into Zeke's graces, and Zeke allowing her to cozy up to him.

The comments about working mothers had struck a nerve, only reinforcing her realization that she and Zeke were wrong for each other. Zeke was worried about his daughters' motherless state, a characteristic that was unbelievably charming and unsettling at the same time. Even if she could forget the horrible night with Joey and be a good mother, Zeke wanted a stay-at-home mom. And she couldn't fall into the same trap as her mother. They'd only wind up resenting one another, just the way her family had.

 

T
WO WEEKS LATER
, Zeke grimaced as he left the clinic. Friday night loomed ahead and he'd been forcing himself to date, but he quickly discovered the process grew old after a while. Compliments of his meddling mother, he had a date with Vicky Preston, a divorcée from church who'd generously offered to prepare dinner for him and the girls. She insisted on bringing her twelve-year-old son, suggesting that if the kids meshed, next time her son could baby-sit while they dined out. He'd rather go to the dentist and have teeth pulled than make small talk with a stranger tonight.

For the past weeks, he'd concentrated on the twins. He'd taken them to movies, to McDonald's restaurants, and back to the clinic at night to play with the animals—anything to avoid going home. When they asked about Paige, he explained she was busy with school and her career. They didn't like it, but they accepted it, mainly because he'd bribed them so much. Bribery—what a pathetic excuse for fathering.

To his horror, several more women had responded to his daughters' advertisements for a mother. One of his
clients, Cynthia Duncan, had brought him a gourmet lunch on Monday. He'd honestly tried to find her attractive, but her high-pitched voice reminded him of a yippy terrier. In fact, all the women he met reminded him of some breed of dog. Dana Hudson made him think of a pit bull. Janet Hanley, a poodle.

He'd seen Paige go out with Derrick several times. He'd tried to ignore her, but he always ended up brooding until she arrived home. She and Derrick must be getting tighter. Dammit, he missed her. Didn't she miss him at all?

“It's your mother on line three,” Clara said.

“Got it.” Zeke grabbed the receiver. “Hi, Mom, what's up?”

“Well, dear, I promised the girls they could spend the night again. How about this Friday?”

He could send the girls to his mom's and he and what's-her-name could have the house to themselves. Instead, he heard himself say, “Wait till Saturday, Mom.”

“Okay. I've already made their favorite cupcakes and filled the candy dish.”

Zeke pinched the bridge of his nose. “Great, see you tomorrow, Mom.” He hung up, annoyed with himself. Why hadn't he taken her up on the Friday night deal? He could have a night alone with his date, maybe enjoy a more adult evening. What color hair did Vicki have anyway?

He ran a hand across his stubbled jaw, trying to remember, but his mind instantly conjured images of Paige. Right now, he'd be satisfied to stay home and watch
Bambi
with the twins and his sexy neighbor. Especially if he could share a bowl of buttered popcorn with Paige.

Well, almost satisfied.

 

T
HE PAST TWO
weeks, Paige had submerged herself in her design project, worked on Amelia's wedding dress and spent several evenings with Derrick house hunting. Derrick had narrowed it down to three choices. Hopefully, he'd decide on one soon. Her patience was wearing thin. She'd wanted to be choosing her own house—a new place for her and her own husband. Worse, she kept picturing Zeke's face everywhere she went—in the kitchen making coffee after a long night of lovemaking, in the shower, steaming water dribbling over his hard, angular features, in the bedroom…

She shook herself back to reality. At least Amelia's dress was almost finished. She simply needed to add the lacy trim and beads on the bodice and the veil.

Friday afternoon, she counted up the checks in the register at Bev's Boutique and sighed. She'd turned down an invitation to meet another one of Amelia's friends for happy hour, claiming work as an excuse. Instead, she'd planned a quiet night home, with a good movie and a bowl of popcorn. Now, if only she had someone to share it with, the evening would be perfect. But she remembered her nightmare about Joey and the twins, and knew Zeke couldn't be the one.

 

“S
UMMER
, A
UGUST
, pick up the den before Vicky and her son arrive, please.” Zeke scraped the food from the leftover dishes and peeked into the den. A tornado zone. Music from
The Flintstones
drifted through the room and in spite of his request, the twins hadn't budged from the television set. How had Paige gotten them to cooperate so quickly?

“Girls, Vicky's bringing dinner any minute. Clean up now.”

“I don't wanna,” August complained. “Cartoons are on.”

Summer curled up on the couch with her blue bear and sucked her thumb. The kittens climbed from the box where he'd put them under the stairwell and raced around the foyer. The doorbell rang, but the girls simply stared at him, then back at the TV. Henrietta grunted and continued chewing on one of her toys. Some watchdog.

“Girls, they're here!”

He hurried to the door and swung it open, hoping his girls would behave themselves. They'd been disagreeable ever since he'd told them about his date. Vicky Preston stood on his stoop wearing a short red dress and black heels. Her short dark hair spiked around her oval face. She glanced at his clothes and frowned, prompting him to check for dried blood or animal hair on the front of his shirt.