His Holiday Bride

“I don’t know.”

“Amber…”

Amber felt a tear slide down her face, at the same time she felt a hand press against the small of her back as Paul lifted the receiver out of her hand. The small gesture seemed to be some kind of signal to her body, because as soon as Paul had the phone again, the tears began to run down her face in a steady stream.

“Luther, it’s still really early here, and Amber is just waking up. Let her get some breakfast and we’ll call you back.”

Amber pulled a couple of paper towels off a nearby roll and went to look out the window into the backyard. She quickly wiped her face and blew her nose. She only caught snippets of the conversation after that, but by the time she pulled herself together Paul had hung up the phone and returned to cooking the bacon.

“I hope you like bacon,” Paul said, while flipping the partially cooked meat. “It’s the only breakfast food I know how to cook.”

Amber chuckled. Just then she heard the clanking of something plastic. Turning toward the sound, she noticed the playpen in the corner for the first time. She crossed the room and looked down at the most adorable little face she’d ever seen.

The chubby baby boy lying on his back was dressed comfortably in a light blue onesie. His small head was covered with large, fluffy curls, and he seemed to be completely absorbed in the plastic key rings trapped between his tiny toes. That was, until Amber’s face appeared over his playpen. His perfect round face spread in a wide grin at the sight of the visitor, as if he had been fully expecting her.

Unable to resist, Amber reached down and lifted him up. “Well, hello there, aren’t you the sweetest little thing.”

The baby looked back and forth between Amber and his plastic toy, which fell off his feet when he was lifted. He was obviously torn.

Deciding his toy could wait, he focused his complete attention on Amber, his large brown eyes running over every detail of her face in complete concentration.

“He’s beautiful. Is he yours?” Amber asked Paul, who was scooping bacon out of the skillet.

Paul gave the pair a cursory glance. “Yes. His name is Joachim.”

“Hello, Joachim.” Amber wiggled her fingers, as the baby playfully tugged at them.

Joachim’s eyes widened in surprise, and his pink, heart-shaped mouth fell open in fascination as Amber laughed.

“Oh, he is a darling.” Without really thinking about what she was doing, Amber wandered over to the table and sat down with the baby in her arms. “How old is he?”

Paul tilted his head, considering the question. “He’ll be eight months exactly, in two days.”

Amber bounced the baby on her lap. “Happy birthday, Joachim,” she said cheerfully, and Joachim smiled and gurgled in return.

“I think he likes me,” Amber said proudly. She frowned as she saw the smirk flash across Paul’s face. “What?” she asked suspiciously.

“My son’s no fool,” he said, dishing several perfect strips of bacon on two plates. “If a beautiful woman coddled me and bounced me on her lap, I’d be happy, too.”

Amber made a face, and turned the baby away from the heat of the skillet. “Um, look, Paul, about last night.”

“Yeah, what about it?” Paul placed the skillet in the sink.

“I just wanted to say thanks.”

“No thanks necessary.” He gently took the baby from her arms.

Joachim quickly protested until his father began to lower him into the playpen and he spotted his plastic key ring. Sitting on his diapered bottom, he reached over and grabbed the toy with his chubby hand and immediately put it to his mouth.

“I’ll be out of your house as soon as I can.” Amber glanced around the room as a thought occurred to her. “Nice digs for a security guard,” she said absently.

“Look, Amber.” He grabbed a piece of bacon, and looked directly at her. “What you told me last night is between you and me. Your family will only know what you tell them. They won’t hear anything more from me.”

Embarrassed at how easily he’d read her thoughts, she quickly returned her attention to the plate. “I’ll be out of your way by noon. Can you tell me where the closest airport is?”

“There’s no one here but me and Joachim. You’re perfectly welcome to stay as long as you like.”

She bit her bottom lip, refusing to accept the tempting offer. Staying here with her hero and his sweet baby would mean not having to face her family, or Dashuan. “That’s a generous offer, but I couldn’t—”

“Just think about it. If you still want to leave later, I’ll take you to the airport. Deal?”

She nodded, and glanced around the large kitchen. “You said there’s no one here but you and Joachim?”

“Mmm-hmm.” He took another bite of bacon.

“What about Joachim’s mother?” she asked with the lift of an eyebrow.

Paul’s dark eyes honed in on her face like a predator. He slowly wiped his mouth with a paper towel and stood. “We’re not together.” Paul grumbled as he went to scrape the crumbs into the garbage before putting his plate and the skillet in the dishwasher. Then without any warning, he walked over and picked the baby up from the playpen.

“There’s some guest towels and washcloths in the hall closet, also a new toothbrush and toothpaste in the guest bathroom,” he called over his shoulder, as he headed for the doorway.

Amber frowned down at her plate, wondering if her breath was worse than she thought. “Thank you,” she muttered.

No longer hungry, she pushed her bacon around on the plate, and listened to Paul and Joachim climb the stairs. The room temperature had gone from comfortable to freezing cold in a matter of seconds. What had she said wrong?

About an hour later, after she’d taken a shower, Amber finally mustered the nerve to call her sisters.

She sat down on the side of the bed and picked up the phone. She decided to call Pearl first. They had always been close, and she was pretty sure Pearl was the least likely to judge her.

Pearl answered on the first ring. “Hello?”

“Pearl?”

“Amber! Where are you? We’ve been worried sick about you. Are you all right?”

Suddenly, Amber heard the sound of Opal on the other end. “Amber, is that you?”

Amber covered her face. So much for approaching Pearl first.

“Really, I’m okay.” She heard Ruby in the background, trying to get the phone from one of her sisters.

“What were you thinking?” Opal said with frustration. “Running off with someone like Dashuan Kennedy?”

“I know. It was a stupid thing to do.”

“Are you coming home today?” Pearl asked, before the phone was taken out of her hand.

“Amber, are you okay? Did that man hurt you?” Ruby said.