A Mistletoe Affair

Her heart did something all together different when she looked up again and found Jordan with his bottom lip between his teeth, concentrating hard as he threaded Mason’s chubby arms through his jacket sleeves. She absolutely hated that everything he did looked so damn sexy on Jordan. And that she couldn’t help but love it.

She suddenly discovered a bright spot to her canceled date.

“I’m free to babysit tonight,” she said to Jordan.

His head popped up. “You sure? What if your date manages to get away from the hospital after all?”

“From the way things sounded, that doesn’t seem likely. Besides, you look as if you can really use the rest.”

“I told him he looks like shit,” Sandra said.

Vicki covered Mason’s exposed ear. “Not in front of the baby,” she admonished.

“Don’t waste your time,” Jordan said. He hooked a thumb toward his sister. “I’ve already accepted that this one will teach my son every swearword there is by the time he turns three.”

“That’s what aunties are for,” Sandra said, giving the baby a kiss on the cheek before heading back up the staircase.

“So are you really up for babysitting tonight?” Jordan asked. “Because if you are I won’t turn you down. Sandra’s right, I do look like shi... Crap,” he finished.

“Saying crap isn’t much better,” Vicki said, unable to hide her grin. She jiggled Mason’s chubby cheek. “Just wait until his grandma Nancy hears those swearwords coming out of his mouth. Then both your daddy and Auntie Sandra will have some explaining to do.”

“Don’t remind me,” he said.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Vicki laughed. She turned her attention back to Mason. “What do you think of me coming over, huh? We can play games, or watch a movie, or even make a snowman while your daddy gets a little rest. What do you say about that?”

The little baby teeth that peeked out as his face broke into a smile was hands down the most adorable thing she’d seen in months.

“I think he’s okay with it,” Jordan said with a grin of his own.

Her reaction to that smile was wholly uncalled-for. Maybe if she refused to acknowledge the flutter that swept through her stomach, she could pretend it didn’t really happen. Because, seriously, how could a simple smile give her butterflies?

She could not wait until the day she was past this ridiculous infatuation—if she could ever move past it.

No. There was no if about it. When it came to her feelings for Jordan, the new Vicki was not going down the same road the old Vicki had traveled. She’d come to that decision after Sandra’s wedding. It was the reason she’d signed up on that dating website: she was done pining for Jordan Woolcott.

Yet she’d just agreed to babysit for him tonight. What in God’s name had convinced her to come up with that stellar suggestion?

She studied the look of exhaustion etched around his face and was reminded of just why she’d made the offer.

“Are you on your way home now?” Vicki asked.

“You done here?” he asked, gesturing to the refrigerated display case.

“Yep, Petals is closed for the day. I was supposed to be on a date, remember?” Vicki refused to read anything into the way his brows dipped at the reminder. “Just let me grab my purse and keys and I’ll follow you to your place.”

She retrieved her phone from the counter and sent Sandra a text message, letting her know she was leaving. When she went outside, Jordan was strapping Mason into his safety seat. A few minutes later, they were making their way along Seaside Drive, the stretch of highway that hugged the coastline that wrapped around Wintersage. Jordan lived on the opposite side of town, what locals called “below the bay.”

Jordan’s gray, single-story, shingle-style cottage, with its charming white shutters and walkway bordered by weather-beaten boulders from the shoreline, was, in Vicki’s opinion, one of the most charming homes in this section of Wintersage. Though modest for someone of Jordan’s means, it seemed to fit him perfectly.

He turned into his driveway and both doors of the double garage opened. Vicki pulled her car in alongside his. When she walked over to Jordan, he was holding a finger against his lips.

“He fell asleep on the drive over,” Jordan whispered.

“Ah.” Vicki nodded. She pointed to her car and mouthed, “Should I go?”

He hunched his shoulder. “I guess,” he whispered as he unstrapped Mason. He took great care in lifting the baby from the safety seat, huddling him close to his chest.

Vicki waved goodbye and started back for her car, but her feet stopped at the sound of Mason’s sudden wailing. She spun around and instantly took pity on Jordan’s pathetic expression. He looked on the verge of collapse.

“I guess I’m staying after all,” Vicki said, returning to Jordan’s side. She lifted Mason from his arms. “It’s okay, honey.” She patted his back as she followed Jordan up the garage’s steps and into the mudroom.

By the time they entered the house, Mason’s wail was down to a soft whimper. Vicki carried him through the short hallway that led into the kitchen, but stopped short as she passed the threshold.

The place was a mess.

Plush teddy bears and plastic toys littered the floor. There were newspapers and empty coffee mugs strewn about the table in the breakfast nook. Dirty dishes and at least a half dozen sippy cups filled the sink.

“Uh, excuse the mess,” Jordan said as he pushed aside an open box of animal crackers to make room on the counter for the baby bag he’d carried in from the car. He perched against the counter and folded his arms over his chest.

He looked from her to Mason and huffed out an exhausted laugh. “I don’t know what you do, but I wish you’d tell me,” he said. “I’m starting to believe you have some kind of magical powers when it comes to my son.”

“I already gave you my theory,” she said. “You’re agitated, and I think Mason can sense that.”

“I guess your theory makes more sense than magic. I have been wound pretty tight since the election results came in. I can’t seem to relax.”

“Have you tried?”

“Not really,” he said with another weary chuckle. “I’ve never been good at it. Always seems as if my time could be better spent doing something more productive.”

“Get some rest, Jordan. I’m sure some uninterrupted sleep will do you good.”

He walked over to them and smoothed a hand over Mason’s head. This brought him way too close to her for her peace of mind.

“Maybe you’re right,” he said.

“There’s no ‘maybe’ about it,” Vicki said, taking a step back to create some distance between them. “Put the election and everything else out of your head for a few hours and rest. This little one and I will be just fine.”

He came over to them again and pressed a kiss to Mason’s forehead. “Thanks again for doing this,” he said to her, his grateful though exhausted smile setting off all kinds of sinfully delicious tingles in her belly.

Goodness, but she was pitiful when it came to this man.

“If you need me, just come in and wake me,” he said before walking through the arched entryway that led to the rest of the house.

Vicki remained standing there until she heard the click of a door closing.

She looked down at Mason. “The new Vicki needs to remember what she said about not acting a fool for your dad.”

“Ball,” Mason said, pointing to a multicolored ball on the table.