The Christmas Wife (11 page)

He started to stand and Hattie held her arms out.  “I need
my bedtime hug.”

He leaned down and she flung her arms around his neck and
squeezed tightly.  “Good night, Deacon.  Thank you for playing with me today.”

“You’re welcome, Hattie.”  He patted her back gingerly as
she kissed him on the cheek and then tucked her back under the covers.  “I’ll
see you in the morning.”

He shut off the light and moved quietly down the hall to his
bedroom.  He really should go to his office and do some work but God, he was
tired.  Taking care of a seven year old was more work than he could have ever
imagined. 

He stripped off his shirt as he opened the bedroom door. 
Claire was sitting on the side of the bed and he hurried over to her.  “Claire,
what are you doing?”

“I’m feeling a little better,” she said.  “I figured you
should have your bed back.”

He shook his head and made her lie down.  “Just because you
kept some water and broth down today doesn’t mean you’re better.  You might
need something in the middle of the night.”

Too tired to argue, Claire curled up on her side as Deacon
tucked the covers around her.

“Thank you, Deacon.  For everything,” she said tiredly as
she closed her eyes.

“You’re welcome.”  He changed into his pajama bottoms and
climbed into the bed, praying like hell that Hattie slept through the night.

“Are you sure you can finish it by the end of tomorrow?” 
Deacon asked the interior designer sitting across from him.  “I want her room
to be done by the time Hattie gets home from school.”

Lisa finished her cup of tea before looking over her design
plans.  “Yes, I’ll pick up most of the supplies this afternoon and have my crew
come over first thing tomorrow morning.”

“Thank you,” Deacon said.

“You know I’m going to charge you overtime for today,
right?”  She grinned at him.  “I don’t usually work on Sundays.”

“I know,” he said.  “It’s fine.  Just send the invoice to my
office.”

She stood and shook his hand.  “Well, I’d better get
started.  Good to see you again, Deacon.”

“You as well, Lisa.  Thanks again.”

He walked her to the door and closed it firmly behind her
before leaning against the door.  He yawned widely before heading to his
office.  Hattie had woken him in the middle of the night and he had spent the
night in her room again, crammed into her bed with her bony elbows and knees
poking into him.  How did parents do this on a regular basis?  He hadn’t done a
single bit of work since Friday and Monday was going to be hell at the office. 
He would answer a few emails at least before figuring out what to make Hattie
for lunch.

He paused and cocked his head.  The house was suspiciously
quiet and he realized that he hadn’t heard or seen Hattie since Lisa had come
by the house nearly two hours ago.  A feeling of disquiet growing in his belly,
he walked quickly toward the staircase.  She wouldn’t be in her room but maybe
she was –

There was a loud bang from the library and he turned and ran
down the hall and into the room.  His heart dropped into his stomach when he
saw the little girl clinging tightly to the middle of the floor-to-ceiling
bookshelf.  As she lifted her foot for better purchase, more books fell from
the shelves and landed on the floor with a heavy thud.

“Hattie!”  He ran forward and reached up, pulling the little
girl from the bookshelf and holding her tightly against his chest.  His heart
was thumping and he gave her a gentle shake.  “What the hell are you doing?”

She grinned at him.  “I was practicing my rock climbing.”

“Hattie!  You can’t climb the bookshelf.  It’s very
dangerous and you could have seriously hurt yourself if you fell,” he said.

“I was fine,” she shrugged.  “I’m really good at climbing.”

“You can’t climb the bookshelf.  Do you hear me?  Promise me
you won’t ever do that again.”

She pouted and crossed her arms over her chest.  “But I need
to practice, Deacon.”

“Not on a bookshelf!”  He shouted and then flinched when
tears started to form in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Hattie.”  He pulled her closer and rubbed her
back.  “I didn’t mean to yell but you really scared me.”

She sniffed loudly.  “I just wanted to have some fun,
Deacon.”

He sighed.  “I know.”

She sniffed again and he could feel her tears wetting his
neck.  “I miss mama.  When is she going to be better?”

“She’s feeling better today, honey,” he said.  “She just
needs another day or two to rest.”

“But I miss her.”  She was starting to sob now and, feeling
useless, he rubbed her back and kissed her soft cheek.

“I know, honey.”

He walked back and forth in the library, rubbing Hattie’s
back and feeling more helpless by the minute as her sobs continued.

He was struck with sudden inspiration.  “Hattie, what if I
took you some place where you could practice your rock climbing?  Would you
like that?”

She sat up and stared at him, her tears forgotten.  “With
real rocks?”

“Sort of,” he said.  “We’ll go to McDonalds for lunch and
then I’ll take you rock climbing.  What do you say?”

“Okay!”  She shouted happily and kissed him loudly on the
cheek.  “Thank you, Deacon!”

“Go and get your jacket and boots,” he said as he set her
down.  Maybe he could do some work after she went to bed tonight.

* * *

When they returned to the house nearly four hours later,
Claire was moving shakily around the kitchen and Hattie squealed with delight. 
She threw her arms around her waist and hugged her tightly as Claire stroked
her hair.

“Mama, do you feel better?”

“A little, honey,” Claire said. 

“Claire, sit down,” Deacon said as he shrugged out of his
jacket. 

“I was just going to try and eat some dry toast,” she said
almost apologetically.

“I’ll make it.  Sit down,” he guided her toward one of the
chairs and she sat down as Hattie climbed into her lap.

“Guess what, mama?”

“What, honey?”

“Deacon took me rock climbing today!”  Hattie crowed
loudly.  “And we went to McDonalds for lunch!”

“Rock climbing?”  Claire glanced at Deacon.

“There’s a rock climbing training center over on Parvin
Street,” Deacon said.  “They have a children’s wall and instructors.”

“Deacon said it was safer than climbing the bookshelf.” 
Hattie said.  “I had to wear a helmet and a rope, and Davey the instructor said
I was a natural.”

“You were climbing the bookshelf?”  Claire said.

“Hattie, go and hang your jacket up and take off your boots,”
Deacon said hurriedly.

“Okay.”  Hattie slid from Claire’s lap and left the kitchen
as Deacon placed two pieces of dry toast in front of Claire.

He sat down across from her.  “I had a meeting this morning
and Hattie thought it would be fun to climb the bookshelf while my back was
turned.  I’m sorry.”

Claire smiled at him.  “It’s fine.  It’s impossible to keep
an eye on her every single minute.”

She took a bite of toast, eating it slowly, as Deacon asked,
“Can you drink some tea as well?”

She nodded, “I think so.”

They could hear Hattie skipping back down the hallway and
Claire reached out and squeezed Deacon’s hand quickly.  “Thank you, Deacon.  I
really appreciate your help with Hattie this weekend.”

“You’re welcome,” he said gruffly.  He was feeling unsettled
by her clear look of warmth and gratefulness, and he pulled his hand away and
moved to the stove to turn on the kettle.

* * *

“Deacon?”

“Hattie,” Deacon groaned and peered at the little girl in
the darkness.  “Go back to bed.”

“Please can I sleep with you and mama?”

Deacon sighed and rubbed at his burning eyes.  He should
take Hattie back to her room but the thought of sleeping in that tiny bed for a
third night in a row made him shudder. 

“Yes,” he said.  “But climb in beside me so you don’t kick
your mama in your sleep.”

“Okay,” she said happily before climbing in behind him.  He
shifted to the middle of the bed as Hattie plastered herself against his back. 

Claire muttered in her sleep and he grunted softly in
surprise when she turned and burrowed against his chest.  She’d had a shower
just before they went to bed and her skin was warm and fragrant with the scent
of strawberries.  He buried his face into her damp hair and inhaled deeply
before sliding his arm around her waist.

She pressed even closer and kissed his bare chest before
muttering sleepily, “Everything okay?”

“Yes.”  He kissed her forehead.  “Go back to sleep,
sweetheart.”

* * *

Claire woke up just as the sun was peeking into the bedroom. 
She kept her eyes closed, listening to the solid thud of Deacon’s heart beneath
her ear and tracing her fingers through the hair on his chest.

It was nice
, she thought dreamily,
to wake up in a
man’s arms
again
. 

Shit.  She was in a man’s arms.  Her eyes popped open and
she lifted her head cautiously.  Deacon was lying on his back next to her, his
arm curled around her to rest on her hip and she was pressed against him with
one leg slung over his.  She bit back her giggle when she realized that Hattie
was in the bed with them.  The little girl was sleeping upside down on the bed,
her face buried in Deacon’s hip and her feet resting on his face.

She studied Deacon in the early morning light.  God, he was
a handsome man.  His eyelashes were long and thick and although his nose was
slightly crooked, it only added to the charm.  A shiver of delight ran through
her when she stared at his mouth.  The guy could kiss, she’d give him that.

And he has a big dick and a dirty mouth and knows exactly
where to touch you.

All very true and, based on how her body was reacting to
lying next to him, she decided she was officially over the stomach flu.  She
still felt weak and tired but her nausea was completely gone and the thought of
food didn’t make her want to simultaneously vomit and faint.  She studied
Deacon’s chest and allowed herself to trace his warm skin again.  If Hattie
wasn’t here, she’d be tempted to duck under the covers, slide Deacon’s pajama
bottoms down and show him exactly how grateful she was that he had looked after
Hattie this weekend.

Tramp!

Yeah, she totally was but it had been six years since she’d
had sex.  She couldn’t be blamed for thinking naughty thoughts when she was
lying in the bed of a truly beautiful specimen of a human male. 

She leaned over Deacon, ignoring the feel of his hard chest
pressing against her breasts, and pushed Hattie’s feet away from his face.  The
little girl snorted and rolled on to her side as Claire ran the tips of her
fingers over Deacon’s bare shoulder.  He even had beautiful shoulders for God’s
sake.

His hand tightened on her hip and she looked up to see him
staring at her.  She started to slide back, she was practically lying on top of
him, but he moved his hand to the small of her back and held her firmly.

“Are you feeling better, Claire?”  His sleep-raspy voice
sent shivers down her spine and she nodded.

“Yes, thank you.”

“Good,” he said.

Her leg was still draped over his and he shifted his thigh
until she was straddling it.  She was painfully aware of how hard his thigh was
between her legs, and it took every ounce of her willpower not to rub against
him.

They stared silently at each other and she moaned quietly
when he rubbed her lower back.  His hand slipped down to cup her ass and she
arched against his thigh before shaking her head.

“Deacon, I’m sorry.  Hattie is in the bed.”

He let go of her ass and she slid from his body with a
feeling of disappointment. 

“Shit, I forgot.  Sorry, Claire.”

“No, it’s my fault.  I shouldn’t have – “

Hattie snored loudly and Deacon winced when she flailed her
legs and one foot caught him in the side of the head.

“Hattie, wake up, honey,” Claire said before reaching over
Deacon and giving Hattie a gentle poke.  “Time to get up, honey.”

The little girl sat up and yawned before rubbing at her
eyes.  “What time is it?”

“Time to get ready for school,” Claire said. 

Hattie nodded before leaning over and resting her head on
Deacon’s stomach.  She closed her eyes and yawned again.

“She takes a few minutes to wake up,” Claire said
apologetically.

“It’s fine,” Deacon replied.

Hattie’s eyes popped open at the sound of his voice and she
grinned at him.  “Hi, Deacon.”

“Hi, Hattie.”

“Are you taking me to school today?”

“No, honey,” Claire said.  “I’m feeling better so I’ll take
you to school.”

“Can we stop for pancakes at McDonalds?”  She asked.

Claire shook her head.  “No, but I can make you pancakes
before we leave.”

Hattie smiled sweetly at Deacon.  “Deacon, maybe you should
drive me to school today.”

He laughed as Claire sat up and slid out of bed.  “Nice try,
Hattie.  Run back to your room and get in the shower, please.”

Hattie stretched and jumped off the bed.  “Bye, Deacon.”

“Bye, Hattie.”

Claire pulled on her robe and smiled nervously at Deacon. 
“I’m going to start the pancakes.  Did you want some?”

He shook his head.  “No.  I’m just going to shower and go. 
I’ve got a lot of work to catch up on.”

“Right,” she said apologetically.  “I’m so sorry you had to
look after Hattie all weekend.  I’ll, um, think of some way to make it up to
you.”

“Will you?” 

His gaze slid down her body and, to her horror, she could
feel her nipples tightening and liquid warmth between her thighs.

“I – yes,” she whispered.

He gave her another scorching look that left her feeling
shaky and needy.  “I look forward to it, Mrs. Stone.”

Without another word, he slid out of the bed and disappeared
into the bathroom.

* * *

“He had to look after her the entire weekend?”  Ellen poured
Claire more tea before joining her on the small loveseat. 

Claire nodded and sipped at the tea.  She had driven to
Ellen’s after dropping Hattie at school and had spent the morning at her
place.  “I felt so bad.”

“Why?”  Ellen gave her a strange look.  “He married you
knowing you and Hattie were a package deal.  Obviously he’s ready to be a dad
to Hattie, isn’t he?”

“Uh, yes,” Claire said nervously as she looked away from
Ellen.  “But I don’t think he expected to be just thrown into it like that and
this is a busy time at work for him.  I know he had work to do that he didn’t
get to.”

She studied Ellen’s studio apartment as Ellen sat silently
beside her.  “Claire, are you having second thoughts about marrying Deacon?”

“What?  Of course not,” Claire said.  “I love him.”

“Yeah, you keep saying that,” Ellen said quietly. 

Claire picked at the arm of the loveseat as Ellen sighed
loudly.  “So, are you feeling up to going shopping with me, or what?  I’ve got
the day off and I need a new dress for Friday night.”