Kitabı oku: «The Cowboy's Unexpected Baby»

Chapter One

Garrett Cole stumbled into the kitchen where he’d set the coffee to brew exactly seven minutes before his alarm went off. The last of the water sputtered through the filter as he pulled the coffeepot out and reached for a mug that wasn’t there.

He heard a mewling sound and froze. It sounded like a cat. Or a kitten. He thought about investigating, but no—coffee first, then strange sounds. Opening the cabinet, he pulled out a mug and, still half-asleep, went through the coffee ritual. One spoonful of sugar, a splash of vanilla almond milk, stir. Drink. Yes.

As the first jolt of caffeine hit his system, he started running the day’s schedule in his mind. Juvenile court at ten o’clock. Mrs. Bledsoe at three o’clock to finalize her latest will. The new social worker Wynn hired was dropping by today or tomor—he stopped, tilted his head and listened.

Was it a cat?

At least one single cat would be easier to deal with than the dog who’d had nine puppies under his porch a few months ago. Puppies everywhere. Puppies galore. He and his brothers and new sister-in-law had chased those little rascals all over the ranch and called in every last favor they were owed to find those pups a home.

He took another swig of coffee and listened. Silence.

In Garrett’s mind, he had three things going for him: his passion for his work, his dedication to family and his willingness to risk everything for a lost cause. And, boy, did those lost causes find him. Puppies under the house. Parents on their last chance to prove their sobriety. And now, apparently, kittens.

Garrett pulled open the door and stepped outside, stopping short when he heard the small cry again.

He spun slowly to the left.

It wasn’t a cat.

Garrett blinked, his mind refusing to process what he saw. There was an actual baby on his front porch. He took a step closer and closed his eyes. It had been a rough week—lots of late hours prepping for the last court case. Maybe he wasn’t as awake as he thought he was. But when he opened his eyes, it was still there—a very tiny baby in a pink outfit, rocking gently on the porch swing in its car seat.

He spun around, peering into the woods, sure his brothers were about to jump out laughing at how good they’d gotten him. But he saw nothing, heard nothing—only the sound of the wind rustling through the dried stalks of the cornfield yet to be cut and the rooster crowing in the distance.

In the car seat, the baby was starting to squirm.

Garrett stabbed his fingers through hair that was forever in need of a cut, the same two questions on repeat in his mind. Who left a baby on his porch? And what was he supposed to do with her?

The tiny face was getting redder, the grunts and whimpers coming more often. Garrett had almost no experience with babies, but he was pretty sure that wasn’t a good sign.

Picking up the seat and the diaper bag sitting next to it, he carried her—pink clothes, so it had to be a girl, right?—into the house. By the time he set her down again on the coffee table, the fussing had turned to full-out wailing, her color going from red to blotchy purple.

Garrett stared at her for a second, indecision paralyzing him. He had no idea what to do. Fingers shaking, he opened the diaper bag and tried to remember what he knew about babies, the sum total of knowledge coming from the few hours he’d spent with his brother Devin’s four-month-old twins.

“If they’re crying, there are three reasons,” Devin had said, ticking them off on his fingers. “Diaper. Dairy. Daddy.”

Garrett had rolled his eyes at his brother’s alliterative description. Now he wished he’d paid more attention. What did that even mean? He grabbed his phone from the coffee table and shot a text to Devin. Need you. Now.

Okay, three Ds. Diaper, that one was easy. The baby could be wet or need a change. And yes, there were diapers in the bag!

But dairy? He chewed his lip as he dug through the bag. That had to be milk.

“Oh, you’re hungry!” He grinned at her like he’d made a breakthrough scientific discovery. She was unimpressed, the crying ratcheting up to a decibel he had no idea a child could reach.

Frantic now, he went back to the bag, searching the pockets in desperation. Nothing. He looked inside. There were a couple of little outfits, but he didn’t see a bottle. With a frustrated grumble, he picked up the bag and shook the contents onto the couch cushion.

Finally, he found two small prefilled bottles, the kind Devin’s twins had when they first left the hospital. He picked up another small package with the nipple, screwed it on to the top of the bottle and set it on the coffee table.

He unlatched the buckles, freed her arms from the straps of the car seat and gingerly lifted her out. One hand under her backside and the other behind her head, he held her like a bomb that could explode any second. Come to think of it, he was pretty sure he’d be less freaked out holding a bomb than he was holding this screaming baby. A baby he’d just found on his front porch.

Going on pure instinct and vague memory, he moved her into the crook of his elbow and picked up the bottle. As soon as he touched her mouth with the nipple, she latched on and began to drink, her distraught cries subsiding except for a few lingering shuddery breaths.

She looked up at him with bottomless blue eyes, tears still pooling in the corners.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. He eased into a chair and stared, shell-shocked, at the wall across from him.

Whose baby was this? He ran through his list of clients in his mind. Would one of them be so desperate that they would leave a baby on his doorstep?

His head jerked up as the front door swung open.

“I need coffee. What’s so important that…” His brother Devin limped into the room, his voice trailing off as he spotted the bundle in Garrett’s arms. “Uh, that’s a baby.”

“Brilliant deduction.”

Devin shot him a look and continued to the kitchen. He took a mug out of the cabinet and filled it with coffee before he came back to the living room and sat down in the chair across from Garrett. “Yours?”

“What? No! I walked outside and she was there, on the porch.” His voice sounded panicky, even to his own ears, but that was probably because he was panicking.

“Why’s all that stuff on the couch?”

“She was screaming and I couldn’t find the bottles so I dumped everything out.”

“I get it, trust me. But it looks like you’ve got it under control now.” Devin reached over and picked a white envelope up from the floor. “What’s this? Want me to open it?”

“Yeah, go ahead.” The baby sucked the last little bit of milk from the bottle. Her eyes were closed now, her little body finally relaxed. “Wait. She finished the bottle. Am I supposed to burp her now?”

“Just put her on your shoulder and pat her back.” Devin didn’t look up from the papers. “The baby’s name is Charlotte. She’s two weeks old. Wow. Two weeks?”

“Who thought it was a good idea to leave a two-week-old baby with me?” Garrett’s voice rose in alarm as he patted the back of the tiny little girl.

“Well, there are some legal papers here that look like someone thought it was a good idea to leave a baby with you forever. You’re listed as Charlotte’s legal guardian.” His brother laughed. “Well…this will put a damper on your merry-go-round of girlfriends.”

Garrett scowled.

“You know I haven’t been out with anyone si—” His mouth dropped open. “Guardian?”

His mind would not process this. Finally, he said, “The mother’s name?”

“Brooklyn Brady. Do you know her?”

Garrett slumped back in the seat, one hand holding the baby in place on his chest. “I know her. I was her law guardian until she aged out of foster care. I didn’t even know she was pregnant.”

Garrett’s eyes stung. Brooklyn had been his client for as long as he’d been doing family law. She’d grown up in foster care with her own mother dropping in and out just often enough to keep the courts from terminating parental rights. Brooklyn had finally been freed for adoption, but by that time she was an angry fifteen-year-old and no one wanted to adopt her.

“There’s a letter here for you.” Devin looked up from the papers in his hand. “How old is this girl?”

“Eighteen.” Garrett’s emotions had been on a roller coaster—no, roller coaster wasn’t descriptive enough. This morning had been more like one of those slingshot rides that shot you into the sky and bounced you around on rubber bands until you got sick.

Mostly now, he just felt sad. Sick, but sad.

“She says she can’t give Charlotte a stable life. She can’t give herself one. So she’s leaving Charlotte with you because…” His brother cleared his throat. “…because you’re the only person who ever made her feel like she wasn’t damaged goods. Like she was worth caring about. That’s why she left the baby with you.”

Garrett had tried to do his best for Brooklyn, but he felt like he’d failed her. She’d aged out without a family, without anyone to guide her and be her support system. She’d kept in touch with him for a while but when she’d stopped calling, he hadn’t tried very hard to find out why.

“What are you going to do?”

Garrett wanted to settle down. He wanted to know that when he came home from work, someone would be there waiting for him. He hadn’t found the right person yet—not for lack of trying—a fact his brothers teased him about incessantly. But he was tired of being alone.

He wanted a family. He just hadn’t expected it to happen like this. “If the paperwork holds up?”

“Yeah.”

Garrett tucked a sleeping Charlotte into the crook of his arm. She barely stretched from his elbow to his wrist. So tiny and so dependent. He blew out a shaky breath and looked up at his brother. “Guess I’ll have to learn how to change a diaper.”

Abby Scott strolled down the main street of Red Hill Springs, Alabama, getting her first look at the little town where she’d taken a temporary grant-funded job as the town social worker. Her golden retriever Elvis walked calmly beside her. He was on a leash, but didn’t need to be. He wouldn’t budge from her side unless she asked him to.

Together, she and Elvis had traveled almost constantly for the last eight years, providing animal-assisted therapy in disaster areas. She was the expert in mental health, but Elvis was her partner, the one who really made the kids she worked with feel better.

Compared to the places she usually stayed, the small house she’d rented in Red Hill Springs had seemed positively luxurious when she’d stopped by this morning to drop off her stuff.

The town was charming with the carefully curated storefronts and restaurants. There was even a pediatrician’s office on this street. For a moment, she wondered if he saw a lot of childhood trauma in his practice and then shoved that thought right out of her head. She’d find out soon enough.

The call from Mayor Wynn Grant asking her to set up a program in their town to make sure no kids slipped through the cracks had come at a perfect time. She was on leave from her job at the disaster relief organization, making her own mental health a priority for a few months.

Her last assignment had been hard. She needed a reset. Brain. Heart. Body. Faith.

A car door closed behind her and she turned around to see her old friend Wynn, hair flying, heels clacking, arms stretched out to sweep her into a whirling hug.

Abby stepped back, laughing. “You haven’t changed a bit since our days on Capitol Hill, Mayor Grant.”

“Ha! I’ve seen the bags under my eyes in the mirror. I know that’s not true.” Wynn locked arms with Abby and drew her down the street. “Come on. My office—your new office—is just a few doors down. You might need to pick up a few things before you start next week.”

“I can’t wait to see it. You’re happy? You look happy.”

Wynn smiled as she pushed open a door next to a small brass sign that said Cole & Grant, and underneath, in smaller letters, Attorneys at Law. “I am. I’ll tell you all about it. But we have plenty of time to talk while you’re here. I’m so excited!”

Abby really didn’t have to ask. She could see the happiness and peace radiating from her friend’s face. A knot formed in Abby’s stomach, the same knot she’d been pushing down, pushing away, for months. She hadn’t felt at peace in a long time and a part of her was afraid she would never find it again. She’d seen so much, experienced so much. Her hand inadvertently went to her side, where the scar from the bullet wound that had been her ticket home still ached.

Her job as a social worker on a disaster relief team wasn’t made up of predictable pieces. It was random and exhausting, but also meaningful. Her decision to go on a training mission to a refugee camp near the Syrian border had seemed like more of the same. She’d never worried much about her own safety. Danger to herself had always seemed sort of abstract.

Until it wasn’t.

Wynn’s voice dragged her back to the present. “So this is it. Nothing extravagant. But we have Bess—the best executive assistant in the southeast. Bess, this is my friend Abby. She’s joining our staff here for a few months—unless we can convince her to stay.”

“Nice to meet you.” Bess was young and pretty, and from the looks of her spotless desk, frighteningly efficient. She picked her bag up from a hook on the back of the chair. “Wynn, I have a dentist appointment this morning, but I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

“Garrett should be in any minute. We’ve got it covered.” Wynn turned to Abby. “I have a few minutes for coffee, if you do, Abs.”

“Of course.” Abby followed Wynn to the coffeepot against the back wall and leaned against the counter while her friend filled two mugs. “I love this. I love all of it. The town, the office, your happy face. I’m so glad I’ll get to be here for a few months to enjoy it.”

“Me, too.” Wynn handed her a cup of coffee with a speculative look Abby recognized. “So tell me why you really had six months to give me for this project. I’m thrilled, believe me. But I thought you were planning to go back to your job when your doctor gave you the all clear.”

“I was.” Abby hesitated. She wanted to go back to work. She found it fulfilling in a way that nothing else in her life ever had been. But being wounded in Syria had changed things, left her feeling helpless in a way she never wanted to feel again. She needed time.

She took a deep breath, about to say just that, as the front door slammed open.

A man struggled through the opening with an infant car seat over one arm. On the other, he’d strung a diaper bag and a half-dozen plastic bags from a discount store.

He was dressed in a suit, but he’d missed a couple buttons on his shirt, which was only tucked in on one side. She narrowed her eyes, glancing over at Wynn. “Client?”

Wynn’s eyebrows shot up. “Ah…no. My partner, Garrett. Who doesn’t have any kids and is usually fully dressed when he comes to work.”

Abby watched as Garrett strong-armed his load onto a conference table. His dark hair was in haphazard disarray. Behind dark-rimmed glasses, his deep brown eyes were expressive and desperate.

“Garrett, what in the world?” Wynn reached him in time to help him untangle himself from the line of plastic bags. A pink plastic baby bottle tumbled out of the bag and bounced off the concrete floor.

Abby crossed to the table and picked up the bottle, holding it out to Wynn’s partner.

He took it from her hand and then looked up, shoulders squaring as he realized he didn’t know her. His gaze shot to Wynn, who grinned.

“Garrett, my best friend Abby, our new town social worker. Abby, this is Garrett. And I have no idea who this baby belongs to.”

“That would be me. For now. Apparently.” Garrett shoved his fingers through longish dark hair, making it stand on end. “I’m her guardian.”

“I’m sure there’s a story there and I definitely want to hear it,” Wynn said. “But right now, I have a date with Judge Morrison.”

“You’re in court this morning? I was hoping you could watch Charlotte. I have court, too. I’d ask for a continuance, but it’s a permanency hearing.”

Wynn shrugged into her suit jacket and picked up her briefcase. “I’m sorry, Garrett. I’m cutting it close as it is.”

She wrapped her free arm around Abby and cinched her in for a sideways hug. “I’m so glad you’re here for a while. It’s been too long. I wish I didn’t have to go.”

“Go do your job. We have time to catch up before I start work next week.”

As Wynn blew out the door, an uncomfortable silence stretched. Abby shot Garrett an awkward smile.

“I’m usually a little more together than this.” Garrett smiled sheepishly, rubbing the stubble on his chin. “I usually shave.”

He was obviously in over his head and since she could understand that, Abby gave him an empathetic smile. “It sounds like you’ve had quite a morning. Most of the time Elvis and I work in places where there’s no running water, so there’s a decent chance I wouldn’t have noticed anyway.”

He looked around the office. “Bess?”

“At the dentist.”

His head dropped. He muttered, “Family emergency justifies a continuance and this is most definitely a family emergency.”

Was he talking to her?

A second later, he dug his cell phone out of his pocket and snapped off a text. He didn’t look up again until he’d shoved the phone back into place in his pocket. His eyes widened when he saw her, like he’d forgotten she was there.

He rubbed his forehead. “Sorry. This morning really threw me. I have no idea what I’m doing.”

Abby told herself this wasn’t her problem. She told herself not to get involved. She even told herself to think about that long nap she’d promised herself this afternoon. “I could stay. I guess?”

His eyes snapped to hers. “Are you sure?”

The hope in his brown eyes made her glad she’d made the impulsive offer. “Sure. I like babies.”

“Do you know how to change a diaper?” His grin was lightning fast as he turned to unbuckle the baby from the car seat. “Oh, no, I left the diapers in the car.”

Abby let out a stunned laugh as he handed her the baby and sprinted out the door. She touched the baby’s dimpled chin with one tentative finger. “Hey, little girl.”

The baby blinked up at her, a fleeting smile crossing the small face. Just like that, Abby was charmed.

She glanced down at her golden retriever, who waited patiently beside her. His blond eyebrows seemed a little skeptical, even as his tail thumped on the floor. “Oh, come on, she’s cute, but we’re just helping out for a little while.” His expression didn’t change. “I mean it. We’re not getting sucked into anything, I promise.”

Chapter Two

A few minutes later, Garrett kicked open the front door of the office and dragged in the box with the porta-crib. Under his other arm was a box of diapers. “Got ’em.”

“Wow. You bought a crib.”

“Yeah, I didn’t have time to do research this morning. I just bought everything. Too much?”

“I’ve been out of the country for a while. I think I’ve forgotten what it’s like to have choices and everything available right when you need it.” Her voice was soft, her eyes on the baby.

Garrett snuck a glance at her. Short dark brown hair prone to wave, long black eyelashes, pretty hazel eyes that looked just a bit wary. He flipped through the information in his mind that Wynn had shared with him about Abby. Licensed clinical social worker. Disaster relief overseas. Old friends. Wait—she got shot. That’s right. She was working in a Syrian refugee camp and somehow got shot.

He gave her a rueful smile. “I’m not usually so impulsive. Or maybe I am, I don’t know. Either way, I just remembered you got shot. I’m sorry. That must’ve been horrible.”

Abby made an attempt at a smile. “Yeah, it was pretty bad. I know all the things to do for people who experience traumatic events, but education only goes so far when you’re the one with the trauma.”

“I was pretty young when my parents were killed in a car accident, but I still remember what it was like to have that safety net pulled out from under me. If you ever want to talk, I’m a good listener.”

She nodded but didn’t say anything, just looked away.

Okay, then. Way to go, champ. Batting a thousand. “So what’s next? Maybe I should set up the porta-crib?”

Abby wrinkled her nose. “Actually, I think now might be a good time for Diaper Changing 101.”

Gingerly, he leaned forward and sniffed. “Oh, yeah. So what do I do first?”

“I laid out the changing pad and the wipes on the conference table.” Abby walked over to the table and, with her hand supporting Charlotte’s neck, laid the baby gently onto the mat. “Make sure you hold her head up if you’re not cradling her against you.”

“Support the neck. Got it.” Oh, surely he hadn’t been letting Charlotte’s head flop around all morning?

Abby stepped to the side and said, “The first thing you do is take off enough clothes so you can change her.”

“I think this is a see-one-do-one learning experience. I’ll just watch you this time.” Garrett mentally crossed his fingers.

“Sure, but you have to take her home with you tonight whether you know how to change a diaper or not.”

“You’re not nice.”

A laugh sputtered out. “Tactfully put. But I get it, it’s cool. You’ll probably be fine on your own.”

“Wait…that came out wrong. You’re obviously very nice.” He shot a grin at Abby and stepped up to the edge of the table. Beads of sweat formed across his forehead as he looked down at the baby, who stared at him with her fist in her mouth. Charlotte’s legs were no bigger than his thumb.

“You just have to go for it. She won’t break, I promise you.”

He could do this, no problem. He’d raised newborn goats and they’d survived. How different could it be? He tucked his fingers under the elastic band at Charlotte’s waist, and after a few minutes of wrangling, he managed to get the baby partially undressed. “Now what?”

“Slide the fresh diaper underneath but keep the dirty one under her until…” Abby’s voice trailed off as he pulled the soiled diaper out and got the clean one dirty.

“Oh. Oh, no.”

She didn’t say anything, just handed him another clean diaper. This time, he slid the clean one under and took the wipe she held out.

“Take two. No worries, Charlotte. We got this.” He held her feet up, took a swipe and gagged.

Beside him, Abby tried—and failed—to hide the fact that she was laughing at him.

“Hey, feel free to get in here and—” He made another pass at the mess. “Oh, this is awful. She’s so wiggly. Stop laughing, Abby.”

She held out another wipe. “Here, but be quick about it, or…”

He sighed, and without a word held out his hand for another diaper.

The giggle from Abby started him chuckling and before he knew it, he was laughing, but he got the diaper around the baby and fastened the tabs. When he looked up, he caught a glimpse of Abby’s smile and it stopped him in his tracks, made him want to dig deeper and find out what really made her tick.

As if his life wasn’t complicated enough.

So that was a big fat no. He was full up on lost causes. He’d tried to help Brooklyn—all that time spent as her law guardian and for what? He was caring for an abandoned baby—her baby—and she was nowhere to be found.

He was on lost cause number umpteen thousand forty-two. He didn’t have time for any more. Even one with pretty hazel eyes and a sharp sense of humor.

Brushing his fingers across the peach fuzz on Charlotte’s head, he picked her up. And the diaper he’d struggled to put on her slid halfway down her legs. “Umm…help?”

“Easy fix.” Abby laid the baby back down on the mat and deftly released and refastened the tabs before slipping the leggings back on bird-thin baby legs. “You did great. You just have to make the diaper tighter than you think.”

Garrett shook his head. “Not as easy as it looks. How’d you learn to do that?”

“I put myself through college being a nanny.” She lifted Charlotte and handed her back to Garrett. “Good to go. You’ll be a pro in no time.”

He cradled Charlotte in his arms and looked down at her little face. She was precious, with that dusting of strawberry-blond hair on her head and long blond eyelashes. And that whole ugly diaper business faded from his mind.

His heart squeezed.

Was he really going to be able to do this?

Abby picked up the diaper-changing paraphernalia and tucked it into the diaper bag, trying to ignore the warm feeling in her chest as she watched Garrett’s face soften. “So how does one end up being surprise guardian to an infant?”

He glanced up. “She was left on my doorstep this morning.”

“What?” Abby gaped at him. It sounded like something from the plot of a TV movie. “Do you know who left her there?”

He swayed back and forth as Charlotte’s eyelids fluttered closed. “Her mom is a former client. I was her law guardian when she was in foster care.”

“Maybe this is an obvious question, but how’d she know where you live? I’d guess that’s not something you share with your clients on a regular basis.”

“No. My brothers and I own a ranch and we have some horses and goats and cows. Last spring, we invited a bunch of foster families out for a picnic. Brooklyn was one of those.” He shrugged. “It seemed like such a small thing at the time.”

“It’s a nice thing. I wouldn’t second-guess it now.” She put her hand on his arm and his dark brown eyes darted up to meet hers. She swallowed hard. “So, um…she just left the baby on your porch?”

“She also left signed papers giving me custody—technically a delegation of parental authority—but I have no idea if that will stand up to scrutiny. To make matters more complicated, I’m a mandatory reporter. I can’t just pretend that a baby didn’t appear on my front porch. I have to report this to family services.”

His eyes were steady behind the lenses of his dark-rimmed glasses and Abby realized that momentary flash of attraction hadn’t gone away. Instead, she found herself drawn to find out more about him. His laugh lines told her he was a man who smiled often, his gentleness with the baby revealing a kind heart.

Oh, girl, get a grip on that wild imagination. She had no space in her life right now for any kind of entanglement, romantic or otherwise, even if she did that kind of thing. Which she didn’t. She had to focus on rebuilding her life. Or building a new life?

Whatever—she had to focus. “Do you know how to reach the mother?”

“I tried calling her. Or at least the last number I had for her, but I didn’t get an answer.”

“Tough situation.” Abby paused a moment, not sure if she should even ask the next question. “Do you…want to be her legal guardian?”

He looked down into Charlotte’s guileless face, raised one shoulder and let it drop with another sigh. “I don’t know what I want. I want to make this better—for everyone.”

Abby nodded slowly. “I’m familiar with that feeling. If I can help, let me know.”

“Thanks.” With Charlotte firmly asleep, he laid her gently into her car seat and eased himself free. “Come on, I’ll give you the grand tour.”

The office space was open, industrial almost, with three small offices and the receptionist’s desk on one side of the room. The walls of the offices were glass panels which, now that she considered it, was a thoughtful choice. Enough privacy for confidentiality but enough visibility for everyone’s safety. Something she could appreciate these days.

“Before Wynn joined the practice, the whole space was open. It was just a few chairs and a desk.”

By the front door, there was a cozy seating area. Behind that a conference table and, in the very back of the room, a small kitchenette. The overall effect was warmth from the exposed brick and reclaimed wood, but with enough polish that it would give clients a sense they were in good hands. “It’s really a remarkable space. I can see that you both had a hand in designing it.”

“Thanks. I like it.”

A quick look at the baby reassured Abby that Charlotte was still sleeping, so she followed him across the room for a closer look at the individual offices. Elvis lifted his head to track her movement.

“This one is Wynn’s, if you couldn’t tell from the desk. Her husband Latham made it.”

Like Wynn herself, the small office managed to convey chic and approachable at the same time. The desk was a smooth concrete surface over reclaimed wood supports. It was bare except for a closed laptop and a small bird’s nest with four hand-carved eggs. “I love it. It looks just like her.”

Garrett’s office was next to Wynn’s. In contrast to Wynn’s pristine office, his space was…lived in.

“I like a creative organization system, as you can see.” Garrett grinned.

A long wood counter stretched the length of the wall behind his desk. His filing system seemed to be a series of labeled boxes stacked three deep. She snorted a laugh as she noted the huge black cat stretching in the corner, underneath a signed poster of Michael Jordan dunking a basketball.

“Barney Fife came with the place. No idea how old he is, but I’m guessing at least fifteen.”

She smiled. “I didn’t know you had an office cat.”

“Will your dog be okay having a cat around?”

“Elvis likes cats. Worst-case scenario, he just ignores Barney. Best case, they’ll be BFFs.”

The cat turned one sleepy yellow eye toward her before going back to his nap.

From the door, Garrett said, “He’s very demanding.”

She laughed again. “I can see that.”

“So this one is yours. The desk came out of the historic school. I rescued it before they tore the place down. It’s probably at least a hundred years old.”

“I like it. It has personality.” The two leather chairs were generic but in good shape. She made a mental note to buy a plant and some art for the walls. Maybe a throw rug. Here she had time to make the place—the job—her own. It was a shift in thinking, but a much-needed one. “Oh, there’s a dog bed.”

“Wynn wanted to make sure that Elvis would feel comfortable here, too. She’s really excited about this project. I am too, to be honest. If we can identify ways to help people before they need a lawyer, maybe we can really make a difference in people’s lives.”

“I agree. I can’t wait to get started.” Their tour ended back at the conference table. She started picking up the stuff Garrett had bought for the baby earlier this morning. She found two packages of bottles, a can of formula, three different kinds of pacifiers, some baby socks and, even though he wouldn’t need it for some time, a baby-proofing kit.

Abby was still staring at the assortment of stuff when a woman carrying a diaper bag and a large translucent plastic tub came in through the front door. Garrett sprang into action and met her at the door, taking the big storage tub out of her hands.

“Thanks, Garrett.” The woman’s blond hair was piled on top of her head and, despite circles under her eyes, she sent Abby a bright smile. “You must be Abby. I’m Wynn’s sister, Jules. It’s great to finally meet you.”

“Nice to meet my landlord in person.” Abby smiled. “I dropped my stuff off at the cottage this morning and came straight into town to meet Wynn. I didn’t even have a chance to look around.”

“And I got an SOS call from Wynn about Garrett’s surprise baby, so I packed up a few things just to get him through.” As she spoke, Jules walked to the table and looked into the baby carrier. “Oh, she’s precious, Garrett.”

Garrett seemed to have things under control now, so Abby picked up her purse. She used a hand motion to call Elvis, who was by her side in an instant. “I guess I need to get going.”

He looked up in alarm. “You’re leaving? But I haven’t learned how to make a bottle yet.”

“I think I’ve got you covered there.” Jules unzipped the large diaper bag. “There are some benefits to having a pediatrician for a brother and one of them is free samples. I stopped by his office across the street and filled this bag with little bottles of ready-made formula. They should last a few days, at least.”

“Oh, wow, Jules, thank you. I hadn’t even thought about the pediatrician. I guess I need to make an appointment for Charlotte.”

“You have a lot to learn, but you’ll figure it out. We all do, eventually.” Jules glanced at the smartwatch on her wrist. “I’ve got to run, too—I’m due to meet with the restaurant staff—but if you need anything, let me know. Abby, I hope we can get to know each other better while you’re here, especially since we’re neighbors now.”

“Thanks so much, Jules.”

With a grin shot back over her shoulder and a quick wave, her new neighbor hustled out the door and down the sidewalk. And as the door swung shut, Abby heard the first whimper from baby Charlotte.

“I think that’s my cue.”

“Wait.” Panic laced Garrett’s voice. “Can you get her while I fix the bottle?”

The bottle was easy to prepare thanks to Jules’s thoughtful delivery. A quick shake and he was ready to go. He was holding his hands out to take Charlotte to feed her when the phone rang.

“Do you mind giving her the bottle? I’ll grab the phone.”

Abby hesitated, but took the bottle from his hand and sat down in a chair she toed out from the table. A few seconds later, Charlotte was eating like a champ, her dark blue eyes focused on Abby’s face.

After all that Abby had been through, all that she had seen, she would’ve sworn that her heart was a piece of granite in her chest. She had to be able to stay calm to help the children she counseled, no matter the circumstances.

She’d closed herself off, willed the feelings to go away. And she’d been successful at it until she’d been hit by a bullet. All those walls she’d spent years shoring up had come crashing down, leaving her grieving and exposed. Hyperaware.

Hypersensitive.

Looking into baby Charlotte’s tiny, trusting eyes made her want to make promises. But that was one thing she just couldn’t do. She’d made a promise to a child once and she would never get over the guilt of not being able to keep it.

Elvis laid his big head on her knee, his deep brown eyes looking into hers as if he knew what she was feeling. He probably did. She was the counselor, but Elvis? He was the magic maker. Even traumatized children relaxed when stroking his silky golden retriever fur. She smiled at him, despite the pain she still grappled with. “I’m okay, don’t worry.”

Her dog grumbled, turned a few circles and settled, laying his head on her feet. Elvis worked as hard as she did. In fact, it was his willingness to push through his exhaustion and keep working that had convinced Abby she needed to take a break. They both needed a rest.

So Abby had written a resignation letter—which her boss had refused to accept, instead sliding it into a desk drawer. She’d then promised she would accept it at the end of six months if Abby was still absolutely certain she wanted to quit. Abby had gone from one natural disaster to another for years, never knowing where she would be from one month to the next. So why did six months seem like such a long time to wait for closure?

Looking back at the baby, Abby realized that Charlotte’s eyes had closed again, the bottle slipping out of her mouth. Setting it on the table beside her, she lifted Charlotte to her shoulder. This baby was so new that her legs didn’t even unfold when Abby picked her up. But as Abby patted her back, she let out a soft burp and melted into Abby’s shoulder.

Abby sighed, too. It felt good to be able to solve Charlotte’s immediate problem with a bottle and a burp. So she took advantage of the sweet baby-holding feeling and let it sink in—the muted hum of the HVAC overhead, Elvis’s soft snores and the comforting weight of the baby on her chest.

Her eyes popped open as the sound of the phone hanging up interrupted her almost nap. Garrett grinned as he caught sight of her in the chair with the baby. His long legs ate up the distance across the room.

Leaning forward, he peeked over her shoulder at the sleeping baby. Elvis lifted his head, suspicious of this man getting so close to her, his eyes unerringly following Garrett’s movements.

“Do you want to hold her?”

Garrett’s smile vanished, replaced by a wary look that she instantly knew wasn’t a feeling that Garrett Cole was very comfortable with.

“Come on, no turning back now.”

She switched Charlotte to a cradling position and stood, placing the tiny bundle in Garrett’s arms. His expression gentled as he watched Charlotte sleep, and Abby’s heart gave a painful thump. She stepped back, away from him. “No.”

“Pardon?” He looked up, his eyes crinkling as his smile returned.

“Nothing.” She let out a shaky laugh and picked up her bag. “I’ve got to go.”

These couple of hours with Garrett had been fun. He was smart and compassionate and… She was here to heal. To get a family preservation program off the ground.

Not to try to date her best friend’s partner—no matter how adorably befuddled he was.

Chapter Three

Three days later, thanks to Abby’s expert tutelage, Garrett had the diaper changing down. He could change a diaper like a champ, he thought. It was the rest of his life that was going down the tubes.

This week had been the longest of his life and it was only Thursday afternoon. Rather than go home to his tiny empty cabin, he’d gone to the home where he’d grown up, where his brothers still lived, hoping a visit would take his mind off of all the unknowns.

He stuffed Charlotte’s legs back into the leg holes of her sleeper and zipped it. Sliding one hand under her head and the other under her bum, he lifted her up. “Time!”

Devin’s head jerked up from where he was snapping the twins into their pajamas. “What? Not possible. You’re still an amateur.”

Garrett’s sister-in-law Lacey looked up from the book she was reading. “I think he has an advantage since he only has one baby, honey.”

With a laugh, Garrett plopped Charlotte into one of the bouncy seats Lacey and Devin had for the twins and turned on the vibrating gizmo. “The zippered outfits that Jules gave me were a game changer.”

“Zippers?” Devin narrowed his eyes. “Mine are wearing pants!”

Garrett raised his eyebrows and made a zipping sound as he reached for his mug.

“Don’t encourage him, Garrett, because the next thing that happens is he’ll be headed into town to get new clothes for Phoebe and Eli so he can beat your time.” Lacey closed her book as Phoebe started to fuss, but she paused to drop a kiss on Devin’s head. “I’ll get the bottles.”

“She does know me well.” Devin buckled Eli into the other seat, lifted Phoebe to his shoulder and stood, bouncing. “Well, you seem to be taking all this in stride.”

Garrett nearly spit his cold coffee out. “Really? Because I feel like I’m slowly sinking in quicksand while the rest of my world is falling apart and struggling is only dragging me in deeper.”

“That seems kind of dramatic.” Devin took the bottle Lacey handed him and settled on the sofa with Phoebe as Lacey picked Eli up to feed him. “Like what?”

“Like, I need to talk to Charlotte’s mom and I can’t get her to respond to my texts or calls. Like, just about the time I open a file and really start working, it’s time for feeding or diapering or bouncing or she needs her pacifier.”

His voice was climbing. “She only sleeps in thirty-minute snatches. I have her seventy-two-hour hearing tomorrow in family court—when the judge will decide if she needs to be in foster care—and the most efficient assistant in history is one more poop explosion away from quitting. And if she quits, Wynn will kill me and I can’t let that happen because I have a baby now.” He ran out of breath about the time he ran out of words and at the exact time that he realized his brother and Lacey were both staring at him, eyes wide.

He sighed and stabbed his fingers into his hair as he muttered, “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, Garrett. We’re your family. Who else are you going to tell?” Lacey, beside Devin on the sofa, elbowed her husband, who cleared his throat.

“Yeah, babies are hard. What can we do to help?”

Garrett let his head fall back against the leather seat of the recliner. “You guys have your hands full with your own kids. I’ve seen Lacey making cookies in the middle of the night to sell at the farm stand and I know how slim your margin is. I’ll figure it out.”

“There’s always day care, right? Where does Wynn take A.J.?” Devin asked.

“To Community Church, but they have to be six weeks old to go there. And who knows if I’ll have her then, or if they’ll even have a space for Charlotte when the time comes.”

Lacey lifted a sleeping Eli to her shoulder and stood. “Give yourself some grace, Garrett. Even people who have time to plan are overwhelmed with the reality of what it’s like to have a baby.”

He nodded, his gaze going to Charlotte asleep in the bouncy seat. She was so little, the size of one of his hands, and just so dependent on him for everything.

Yeah. Overwhelming was a good word for it.

His brother Devin said, “I bet one of the church ladies would be willing to babysit.”

“Normally, yes, but they’re all in Branson, Missouri for ten days. Some kind of quilting conference and then they’re hitting a bunch of shows. Their timing is terrible.” Garrett heard the words he’d just said and wanted to gobble them back. “That was a joke.”

Eli’s pacifier popped out and Lacey bent her knees and snagged it before it could hit the floor. “Ooh, I know—what about the new social worker, the one who kept Charlotte a couple of days ago while you were in court? Has she started her job yet?”

“You mean Abby?” A smile started at the corner of his mouth. She’d saved his skin that first day and he’d thought of her often since then. She didn’t even know him, but her quick humor and totally unfounded confidence in his ability had made Garrett feel more in control.

“See? Right there. There’s the look I was telling you about.” Devin pointed at Garrett. “He makes that face every time she comes up in conversation.”

Lacey studied Garrett’s expression with a squinty eye. “Hmm. I see what you mean. Very curious.”

“You guys are hilarious.” Garrett started tossing stuff back into Charlotte’s diaper bag. “I’m leaving.”

Lacey smiled, clearly amused, but her voice was kind. “Garrett, you’re always the first one to step in and help when we need it—when anyone needs it. It’s all right to ask for help yourself.”

He much preferred being the one doing the helping, but maybe Lacey was right. In any case, he didn’t have much choice. He was desperate to find a sitter for tomorrow afternoon. “Okay, I’ll text her.”

Abby’s shiny dark hair and pretty hazel eyes came to mind. She was the silver lining to this absurd situation if there was one. And if he had to ask for help, at least he’d get to see her again.

Abby stirred sugar into her coffee, the very act seeming like a luxury. She’d had instant coffee in the refugee camp, and she could almost always find a way to boil some water, but it wasn’t the same as freshly brewed. Not even close.

A knock at the door startled her and she glanced at the clock on the oven. Ten thirty! She’d expected it to be seven o’clock. Maybe it was a good thing she was starting work on Monday.

The knock came again. She glanced down at her yoga pants. Old, but the holes were all in discreet locations. Her feet were bare, toenails in the screaming pink neon polish that had been an impulse when Wynn had dragged her to the salon for a much-needed pedicure the day before.

With a quick fluff of her bedhead, she wrapped her fuzzy gray sweater around herself and took a quick peek through the peephole in the door. Garrett stood on her doorstep, his collar turned up against the wind, the handle of the baby carrier gripped in one hand.

She tugged the belt on her sweater a little tighter and pulled the door open just as he was turning away. “Hi.”

Garrett turned around, his beaming smile fading just a bit as his eyes traveled from her disheveled hair to her bare toes. “I think maybe… I came at a bad time. I texted you.”

“Not a bad time. This is just me, not working, and I turned my phone off because my former boss keeps asking me to come back to work.” Tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, she shivered. “I thought winter was supposed to be mild in Alabama. It’s freezing out there. Come in, please.”

He followed her into the living room and she saw him take note of the dishes in the sink, the pillow and blanket on the couch. Inwardly, she might have cringed a little, but what was the point? “Sorry for the mess. I’m making up for lost sleep. Like four years’ worth. So what can I do for you? Or is this a social call?”

Garrett placed the baby carrier on the kitchen table and took a deep breath as he folded back the cover. “Not exactly.”

She leaned forward to sneak a peek at Charlotte before she leaned back against the counter and crossed one ankle over the other. “Okay?”

He rubbed one thumb across his lips. “Wow, this is more awkward than I thought it would be. I need help. I’ve asked all the church ladies and pretty much everyone else I know and I can’t find a babysitter for Charlotte. I know it’s not fair to ask, but is there any way you could help me out this afternoon?”

“You talk so fast.” Abby crossed to the table and unbuckled the car seat straps. She lifted Charlotte into her arms, smiling down at her. “Hi, baby girl.”

“Yeah, sorry. Hazard of the job. Judges never give you enough time to say what you need to say.” Garrett sat down in one of the chairs at the kitchen table. His cheeks were ruddy with cold, or maybe a little chagrin at having to ask for help.

Abby swayed back and forth as Charlotte’s eyelids drooped closed. Garrett was clearly overloaded and Charlotte was just sweetness. “I can watch her. I don’t mind.”

Garrett closed his eyes for a second and she wondered if he was praying. When he opened them, he said, “You’re sure? It’s just for the afternoon.”

“Truthfully, I’ve been in a lot of situations where I wished there was something I could do. If this actually helps you, I’m glad to do it.”

“The seventy-two-hour dependency hearing for her is at two o’clock.”

“That’s fine. I don’t have anything else to do. And I’m well rested.” Abby’s lips twitched, but she kept patting Charlotte, not sure the baby was firmly asleep yet. “What happens at the hearing?”

“A social worker from the Department of Human Resources will tell the judge what happened and make a recommendation to the court. I think they’ll recommend that she be officially placed with me.” He nudged his glasses farther up his nose and stabbed his fingers into his hair in a motion that she realized telegraphed his stress. “Then the judge will make a decision. He could leave Charlotte with me since we have the papers from her mom. Or he could decide that Charlotte would be better off with foster parents. I really have no idea. This situation isn’t one I’ve come across before.”

“Do you want to keep her?”

The question echoed the one she’d asked him the first day and again Garrett paused. His eyes lingered on Charlotte’s little face and his eyes softened before he nodded. “Yeah. I want to keep her. I may be the strangest choice for a guardian anyone’s ever made, but she’s safe with me.”

“Good. I can see why her mom chose you.”

Garrett blinked and then he grinned. When he smiled, it wasn’t just his lips. His smile broke through the winter gloom, brightening the whole room. “Thanks, Abby. I appreciate that. I’ve got to run. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Just text me when you’re done and I’ll bring her to your office. I need to get out of the house anyway.”

“Perfect. I’ll leave the car seat base on the front porch.” He took a moment to brush his fingers across Charlotte’s forehead and then was gone, leaving her staring at the closed door.

Okay, so he was really attractive. It had been a long time since she’d been around anyone other than fellow disaster relief workers and they had been as exhausted and careworn as she was.

That didn’t mean a flirtation was a good idea. In fact, it was a very bad idea. His smile might warm a room, but everyone knew that getting too close to the sun would burn you.

Garrett leaned on the counter where Bess worked, talking into the phone she handed him while he texted on his cell phone. He heard the door open and turned to see Abby coming in the office door. He quickly ended the conversation, hung up the phone and crossed to her, lifting the heavy infant seat from her hand. “Everything go okay?”

Abby grimaced. “I think maybe she’s hungry. She cried all the way here.”

Little hiccups could still be heard coming from underneath the stretch cover over the car seat. Garrett pulled the cover back to peek inside. “Aw, Charlotte. What’s the matter?”

As soon as she heard Garrett’s voice, a thin wail rose from the infant car seat.

“She really isn’t happy, is she?” Garrett shifted the seat to his elbow and carried her to the conference table. “Are you ready for a bottle?”

When Charlotte responded with increased volume, Garrett laughed and began the process of unbuckling her. “I think that’s a yes.”

“Thankfully, I made one before I left the house. I had a hunch we might need it.”

He lifted Charlotte out of the seat. “Did Miss Abby try to starve you?”

Abby swatted his arm. “Not funny.”

Garrett settled into one oversized leather chair in his office, while Abby perched on the arm of the other one, digging the bottle out of the side pocket of the diaper bag.

He gave it a little shake and then let Charlotte have it. She really did eat like she was starving.

“I fed her three hours ago, I promise!” Abby’s dark brown hair was pulled back in a low ponytail with little tendrils curling around her face.

She seemed as casually friendly as usual, but that neon pink toenail polish he’d spied this morning seemed to hint that there were facets to Abby’s personality he hadn’t yet seen. It made him want to poke and dig and figure her out.

Her eyes lingered on Charlotte, the expression on her face thoughtful.

“What are you thinking?”

Her cheeks colored, a dimple at the corner of her mouth appearing and disappearing. “Just that Charlotte’s blessed. Not all kids who go through a childhood trauma have someone who cares as much as you do to take care of them.”

He wasn’t sure how to feel—flattered that she thought he was caring, or concerned that she thought Charlotte could be traumatized. “Do you think I should be worried about Charlotte?”

“Babies recognize their parents from the first moments they’re born—their smell, the way their voice sounds. So she’s had a loss. But it helps that she has you.”

“Is that your professional opinion?” He shifted in the chair, a little uncomfortable with the intensity of her study.

“My experienced opinion. You haven’t said… How did things go in court?”

“Okay. Child Protective Services recommended that Charlotte be placed with me, I think partly because of the mother’s request. Partly because they know me.”

“That’s good.” Abby frowned. “Right?”

His head bobbed back and forth—not a yes, not a no. “The judge wasn’t happy. Technically, Brooklyn abandoned her baby, and while it’s understandable that she picked me to leave her with, in a weird way, the judge wants to make sure that she wasn’t coerced.”

Abby narrowed her eyes. “So, you have to find Brooklyn?”

“Someone does.” He tipped the bottle up so Charlotte could drink the last ounce.

“But it seems like she doesn’t want to be found.”

“Therein lies the problem.”

“From a legal standpoint, I guess I can see the judge’s point. The situation is weird, but…Charlotte’s staying with you, right?”

“The judge said CPS could leave her in my care as a kinship provider, but he’s given me until the next hearing to come up with proof that Brooklyn made the choice to leave Charlotte voluntarily. And then there’s the issue of the dad.”

“Who’s the dad?”

“Exactly. We have nowhere to start.” Garrett made a face. “So that has to be addressed at the adjudicatory hearing as well.”

“Which is when?”

“Supposed to be within thirty days or the earliest practical date, which in this case happens to be a little over six weeks from now if it doesn’t get continued.”

“How do you feel about that?”

His eyes were on Charlotte as she slowly took the last little bit from the bottle. How he felt was as complicated as the case. “I feel guilty that I couldn’t just leave it alone, that the mandatory reporter thing took that decision out of my hands. I feel relieved that Charlotte won’t be dragged into another foster home with someone she doesn’t know. And at the same time, I wonder if I’m making the best choice for her because I don’t have any clue what to do with a baby.”

Abby’s lips curved into a soft smile. “You’re doing fine, but all of those feelings seem perfectly valid to me. Any thoughts on where Brooklyn might be?”

“Not a clue.”

“I’ll think about it. There’s got to be some way to find her. In the meantime, I’m gonna get going. I’ve got to run to the grocery store before I head home.” She walked toward the door and turned back to hand him the burp cloth. “Oh—you might need this.”

As if on cue, Charlotte burped and Garrett smiled. “Good call. Thanks for keeping her today. I owe you dinner.”

“You’re welcome. See you Monday.”

As Abby walked away, Garrett’s eyes followed. She was beautiful and complicated and a part of him wanted to figure out what was really under that shell of serenity.

He shook his head, chuckling under his breath. His brothers teased him about his idealistic streak. He fell in love about as often as other guys washed their clothes. Any other time in his life, he wouldn’t have hesitated to ask Abby out. Now?

Even if he did lose his mind and consider it, he had no idea if she was even planning to stay in Red Hill Springs. It was a nonstarter.

They were working together. And maybe…friends?

And that was all he could let it be.

Chapter Four

Abby’s first few days at work were spent brainstorming with Wynn—what specifics the program would focus on, how she would get referrals, and people she needed to contact once she had all the pieces in place to begin the actual work.

Most referrals would probably come from teachers and police officers, but family court attorneys like Wynn and Garrett could request appointments for their clients. There were resources out there for all kinds of obstacles people faced. The problem was connecting the resources with the people who needed them and that’s where she came in.

It had been a while since she’d felt anything but helpless, but somewhere down inside, there was a bubble of hope. Putting a program like this in place was a bold move for a small town, but one that could really impact the lives of the residents. She was excited to get started.

Her experience working in the refugee camp along the border of Jordan had broken her, for lack of a better word. She hadn’t realized how broken she was until she’d finally gotten to her apartment in Atlanta. She’d barely recognized her own home.

She’d been exhausted but she couldn’t sleep. Too thin, but food hadn’t appealed to her. In the middle of the third sleepless night, when she’d been mindlessly scrolling through social media, she’d seen Wynn’s message, asking if she knew any social workers who might be interested in a job like this. She’d called the next morning and two hours later, she’d talked to her boss, (tried to) quit her job and packed her suitcase.

It had been the right decision. After a week in Red Hill Springs—sleeping at night, eating at the café—she was starting to feel not quite so fragile, like the pieces of herself were slowly knitting back together.

“Knock, knock.” Garrett opened the door to her office. He was holding two white paper bags, which he placed on her desk.

She leaned toward him. “You know that’s not actually the same as knocking, right?”

“Yes, but I brought goodies from the Hilltop Café. Doughnut or cupcake?”

“Which one has frosting?”

“Oh, please. Who do you think I am? Both.”

She found herself smiling, another sign that she was reentering the land of the living, and a not-uncommon occurrence around Garrett. “In that case, please do come in. I’ll have the doughnut.”

“Good choice.” He handed her the doughnut still in the wrap and pulled out the cupcake, vanilla with white frosting, before dropping into the chair opposite her. Peeling back the paper, he took a gigantic bite.

With her doughnut halfway to her mouth, she stopped to watch.

In two more bites, he’d finished it off and caught her watching him as he licked frosting off his thumb. He laughed, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and brushed the crumbs off his coat. “Two brothers. I had to learn to be fast when there were treats around. Do you have any siblings?”

“In a way, I do. I have some half siblings that are a lot younger. And I grew up with my cousins. My mom and I lost our house to a tornado when I was five. I lived with my grandma for a while, and then with my aunt and uncle.” She took a bite of the doughnut and pointed at it with the other hand. “Mmm, really good.”

His eyebrows drew together. “I have so many questions. Were you in the house at the time?”

“Yes. We were in the bathroom under the stairs. It was the only part of the house that survived.”

He let out a low whistle. “That’s extreme. You didn’t go back to live with your mom?”

“No. My mom got married the next year.” Elvis nosed her hand and leaned into her leg. She took another bite of the light-as-air doughnut and sighed in appreciation.

“So?”

She put the rest of the doughnut down and brushed the sugar off her hands. “So, nothing. You asked if I had siblings. And the answer is, kind of. We’re not that close, though. My life up to this point has been pretty different than most people’s.”

“You could say that. You gonna eat that?” When she shook her head, he picked up the other half of her doughnut and scarfed it down. “Where was your dad?”

“He was military. Killed in a training accident when I was just a baby.” She realized Elvis was standing beside her and wondered if her voice had betrayed some tension that she hadn’t even realized she was feeling. Her dog was sensitive to every nuanced emotion, which was what made him so good at his job.

She sent him back to his bed with a hand signal.

Because she was fine. A lot of kids had chaotic childhoods. It wasn’t like she hadn’t had food to eat or a roof over her head. Garrett opened his mouth, she could only assume to ask another question, and she didn’t want to answer any more questions. “So what’s up with you?”

“Oh, right. Why I came to find you. I have a client coming in today. Melanie. I’d love it if you could talk to her while I play with her little boy for a few minutes. She doesn’t get a break very often.”

She picked up the bakery bag and tossed it into the trash can under her desk. “Sure, I’d love to. What’s the story?”

“You know how sometimes the deck is so stacked against you to start with that no matter how much you want to, you can’t get ahead?”

Abby looked up. “Yes. Is that what happened to Melanie?”

“Yeah. She’s on a safety plan with Child Services. She made some questionable life choices, but she wants to do right by her kids. You’re gonna love Nash. He’s four and he has cerebral palsy but it hasn’t slowed him down much. He’s a little carrottop with a pistol-ball personality to match.”

“So basically, you want me to find out what needs she still has and connect her with the resources?”

“Exactly.” In the other room, Charlotte started to cry. “Oops, that’s my cue.”

He was gone with as little fanfare as he’d arrived, but she realized she felt good, like she could breathe. And she knew it wasn’t just gaining distance from all she’d been through. It was a job where she knew she could make a difference. It was doughnuts and laughter and baby snuggles and…it was Garrett.

For some reason, it was Garrett. In the back of her mind, she heard an alarm bell go off that said this is different, he is different. But she wasn’t going to listen to it, not right now. Right now, she was going to take Elvis outside for a quick walk and wait for her first client to arrive.

Garrett met Melanie at the door as she tried to maneuver a very small wheelchair. Nash was bouncing in the seat.

“Garrett!”

“Hey, buddy.” He held out a fist and Nash smashed it.

“He’s been so excited to get to come to your office.” Nash’s mom looked like a teenager with her hair pulled back in a ponytail.

“Glad you could make it.” He’d been her court-appointed attorney for the past year and she was doing good. Trying. But trying didn’t mean succeeding. He was here to make sure she had everything she needed to succeed.

Abby opened the door to her office and she and Elvis started toward them. The golden retriever’s tail was wagging a mile a minute.

Nash’s face lit up as he saw the dog. “Doggie. Mama, doggie!”

“I see, Nash. He’s a pretty doggie.” To Garrett, she said, “He’s been begging for a dog, so his day is made.”

“This is Elvis. He loves to play with boys.” Abby gave Elvis a hand signal. As he laid his head in Nash’s lap, the little boy squealed with excitement. To Melanie, she said, “Hi, I’m Abby. I work with Garrett.”

“Melanie. And this is Nash. He’s a little excited to meet your dog.”

“Elvis loves to meet new people, so I think he’s pretty excited, too.”

Garrett leaned over and stage-whispered, “Nash, Elvis is so soft, you could use him as a blanket!”

Nash squinted up at Garrett, clearly thinking that through before he giggled. “Uh-uh. Doggies can’t be blankets!”

Abby shook her head at Garrett, but she had a twinkle in her eye, so he’d count that as a win on two fronts. He clasped his hands together. “I have a surprise for you guys.”

He’d worked for weeks trying to scrape together funding for a specially made stroller for Nash, one that would accommodate his baby sister as well. He brought it out of his office into the open space near the conference table.

Melanie’s eyes widened. “Garrett, what is that?”

“Hopefully, the solution to your problems.”

“Seriously?” Her eyes filled with tears and she put a hand out. “Garrett, you know I can’t pay for this.”

“Don’t worry about that. Let’s see how it works.” In one quick motion, Garrett popped open the stroller and locked the seat into place.

The sound caught Nash’s attention and he looked up. “What’s that?”

“A new stroller. Try turning it around, Melanie.”

She turned it with one hand and looked up in wonder. “Oh, it just glides.”

Garrett grinned as he reached for a couple of levers near the back wheels and folded a smaller seat into place. He had a new appreciation these days for baby products that were so idiotproof even he could work them. “And this is the sibling seat. Little sister gets to sit here.”

Melanie’s face crumpled, her eyes filling with tears.

“Melanie?” Garrett’s smile faded.

“I don’t know how you did this…” She sniffed, visibly struggling for control. “It will change everything. No more missed appointments.”

“Wanna ride. Garrett, I wanna ride.” Nash untangled his fingers from Elvis’s fur and held his arms up.

Melanie laughed. “Hang on, little man. I got you.”

After Nash was unbuckled, Garrett reached down and lifted Nash, placing him in the seat.

“Awesome!” The little boy let out a delighted laugh. “Go, Garrett. Ride.”

Garrett looked at Abby. “I could take him for a quick spin around the block, to try it out.”

“I think that might be necessary.” She laughed as Nash bounced up and down in the seat. Garrett caught him as he launched himself into midair.

“Dude. You have to sit still while I buckle you!” While his fingers were busy with the buckles, Garrett looked up at Melanie. “Abby’s the new social worker in our office. If it’s okay with you, I asked Abby if she had time to talk to you this morning.”

The smile on the young mom’s face faded. “Sure, I guess.”

Abby put her hand on Melanie’s arm. “Don’t worry. It’s just a casual visit. Would you like a cup of coffee?”

“Sure, thanks.” She followed Abby to the kitchenette but looked back toward the door where her little boy was rocking back and forth in the new stroller.

“We won’t be long.” Garrett double-checked the buckles holding Nash into the seat. “No more trying to pretend you’re an astronaut, hear me?”

Nash giggled. “Three, two, one…”

“Blast off!” Garrett blew through the front door, pulling it closed behind him as they raced down the sidewalk. The ecstatic laugh from the four-year-old in the seat told him he’d definitely made the right decision on the stroller.

He gave a quick glance back at the office. He knew Abby was a pro and together she and Elvis were a formidable team, but it was his first time trusting one of his clients with her. Melanie’s confidence was still a little shaky. He hoped he was doing the right thing.

Abby handed Melanie a mug of coffee. “Sit down with me? I bet you don’t have much time to rest with Nash around, not to mention your little girl. How old is she?”

“Nova’s almost six months old. She’s with a neighbor right now.” Melanie followed Abby into her office, pausing to look at the pictures Abby had hung on the wall the day before.

Abby sat in one of the chairs that she’d moved into a conversational grouping. Elvis sat beside her, his attention glued to her face. “Those are photos of people I’ve met at some of the disaster areas I’ve worked in over the years.”

“I can see the destruction in the background, but they look so… I don’t know, strong?”

“Some of the people in those photos lost everything, but despite that, they were still standing. It’s a powerful statement.”

“I can so relate to that.” Melanie sat in the chair next to Abby, the wariness gone from her face. She was young, early twenties maybe, but the way she carried herself made her seem much older.

With a barely perceptible motion of her hand, Abby released Elvis to go to work. He sat in front of the young mom and tilted his head. Melanie smiled at him. “Hi, buddy.”

He nosed her hand and when Melanie reached out to scratch him, Abby knew the connection had been made.

A smile played across Melanie’s face as she rubbed one of Elvis’s ears. She kept her eyes down, but she said, “I don’t know what Garrett told you…”

“He didn’t tell me much. Truly.”

“I’m on a safety plan with the social services people, and Garrett’s my attorney. When we went to court, he fought for me to get to keep my kids with a caseworker checking in on us every month.”

“I don’t want to be nosy, but if you want to talk about it, I’m a good listener.”

The young mom blew her thin bangs out of her eyes and shook her head as if she wanted to negate the memory itself. “My fiancé got high with his friends and came to the hospital when Nova was born. He got a night in jail and I got a caseworker. I had to choose between keeping my children or keeping him. Getting rid of him was the easiest choice I ever had to make.”

Melanie had one hand deep in Elvis’s fur now, the other one smoothing the small hairs on his forehead. “What was hard was that our car was in my fiancé’s name. Without a car, I missed some of Nova’s well-baby checkups and that brought the caseworker back to my house.”

“Oh, wow. That must be so scary.”

“It is—was. The safety plan says I have to take the kids to the doctor and to their therapy appointments on time. The caseworker comes to visit. And we have to go back to court in six months.”

“And where does the stroller fit in?”

There was silence for a moment, the struggle to rein in her emotions once again visible on Melanie’s face. Finally, she looked up with a small shrug. “I couldn’t get on the bus with both kids because I couldn’t push Nash’s wheelchair and a stroller at the same time. And I couldn’t lift the wheelchair if I had Nova in a carrier. I just—I couldn’t do it. Someone at church let me borrow a double stroller, but Nash needs more support than a normal stroller can give him.”

“What a rough time for all of you. Anyone would be reeling after all that.”

“You think so?” Melanie’s shoulders slumped, but hope flared in her eyes. “Do you know how much that stroller was? Ten thousand dollars. I could never have bought that for him. And I guess I just worry how I can be a good mom if I can’t provide what my kids need.”

“Melanie,” Abby said gently, “your kids need you, not what you can buy for them.”

Melanie’s sigh turned into a sob. Elvis nuzzled her chin with his nose, eliciting a strangled laugh.

A squeal of joy reached them from just outside the office. Melanie immediately straightened, swiped tears from her face and smoothed her shirt into place. “I don’t want Nash to think I’m worried.”

As the boys came in the front door, Abby held out a business card to Melanie. “Write down everything you need to really feel like you have a handle on life. Then call and make another appointment with me. There are resources out there and my job is to connect you with them.”

Hope flared in the young mom’s eyes. “You’re serious?”

“One hundred percent.” She paused, looked back at the photos on the wall. “The people in those photos? You’re strong, just like they are. Things have happened that you need to take care of, but you’re still standing.”

Nash shouted from the front door. “Mama! Come see!”

Melanie tucked Abby’s card into her back pocket, swallowing hard before looking up. “Thank you.”

Abby heard her laughing at the engine sounds Nash made as she walked back to meet him. She hoped Melanie would take her up on the offer. Their family, who because of circumstances mostly beyond their control needed help to get back on their feet, was exactly the kind Abby had been brought in to help.

As Garrett walked Nash and Melanie to the door, Abby heard Charlotte waking up in the porta-crib in Garrett’s office and went to check on her. The baby girl had a decidedly crabby look on her face.

“Hi, Charlotte. I bet you need a clean diaper after such a long nap, don’t you?” She reached into the crib and picked Charlotte up. The change was easy with Garrett’s office nursery setup, but clearly, a dry diaper was not what Charlotte wanted. Her cries were getting progressively louder and more annoyed.

Abby picked her up again and tried the pacifier. Charlotte sucked it for a few seconds before spitting it out. “Oh, baby girl, you are mad, aren’t you?”

From the door, Garrett held out a bottle. “She’s probably ready for this.”

“I’d say so.” She took it from Garrett and offered it to the hungry baby.

Over the bottle, Charlotte scowled as if she couldn’t possibly understand what took Abby so long to get it right. Abby laughed. “Hey, I’m not the one in charge of the bottles.”

“She’s opinionated.” Garrett dropped into the chair behind his desk. “Wow. Nash wore me out. Did you and Melanie have a good conversation?”

“I think so. Elvis is kind of a genius at getting people to talk.” She studied Garrett’s face, so handsome with that quick smile that went all the way to his eyes.

“I’m sure it’s all Elvis.”

“Melanie’s doing her best to take care of her kids. That’s gonna be a lot easier with that fancy stroller you got her. How’d you pull that off?”

“It’s just a stroller.” He picked a file up from his desk and spun around to put it away.

“A ten-thousand-dollar stroller?”

He glanced back at her. “Where did you get that idea?”

“Melanie.”

“Oh.” He shrugged. “It wasn’t a big deal. I called in some favors. Asked for some donations. Got a small grant. It was a little legwork, but the end result is that Melanie can get her kids where they need to go.”

“A car would’ve been cheaper.”

“Yeah, but then it would’ve been for Melanie and she probably wouldn’t have accepted it. A gift for Nash and Nova is a little harder to turn down.”

“Smart and thoughtful.”

“It’s all part of the service. Plus, you’re gonna get her the rest of the way. We make a great team.” He shot her a nonchalant grin.

He wasn’t fooling her, though. There was nothing nonchalant about him. He was a full-out idealist and she could feel herself getting sucked into his life, bit by bit. How could she not? He genuinely cared about people and wanted to help. If anyone could understand that, she could.

Garrett was a great guy. A sweet guy. She liked him, but she had to be careful. Because if she wasn’t, he would pull her into his windmill-tilting plans and she’d been down that path. Had the bullet wound to prove it.

And that was the last thing she needed right now.