“Do you need help?” he asked, when she awkwardly got out of the car.
“I can manage.” She held Ben close, avoiding his gaze.
He went ahead, opening the front door for her, not surprised to find it unlocked. She would have been more concerned over Ben’s welfare than about insignificant details.
“Thanks,” she murmured, slipping past him to gently set Ben on the sofa.
He took a moment to glance around her cozy house, noticing one whole wall was dedicated to pictures of Kylie and Ben—mostly Ben.
None of the pictures included a father.
“Is there anything else you need?” He felt bad, just leaving her alone.
“Seth, I’ve raised Ben on my own for the past six years. Trust me, I’ll be fine.”
She’d raised Ben alone since he was born? The idea troubled him. Especially since she didn’t seem to have a lot of money. Didn’t the guy pay child support? Obviously not. He didn’t really doubt Kylie was more than capable of raising Ben on her own, but it didn’t make leaving any easier. “Don’t forget to make that appointment for Ben to see an ophthalmologist.”
“I won’t.” She walked him toward the door. “Thanks for the ride.”
“You’re welcome.” He was oddly reluctant to leave. Where had his normally casual attitude toward women gone? He needed to get himself back on track, and quick. At the door he glanced back at her. “Kylie, since you’re new to the area, feel free to give me a call if you need anything, okay?”
Her brow puckered in a puzzled frown. “Thanks, Seth. But, like I said, I’m sure we’ll be fine.”
He wanted to pull her into his arms for a reassuring hug, but they’d only just met the other day. He barely knew her. She was smart, and a good mother to Ben. Yet he knew she wasn’t his type. She had responsibilities. He couldn’t imagine Kylie going out and having a wild, fun night on the town.
But knowing that didn’t change how he felt. He wanted to see her again. Outside of work.
He turned and left her house, walking quickly back to his car, knowing it was for the best not to take the seeds of their friendship any further.
No matter how tempted he was.
Kylie fed Ben a light dinner of tomato soup and half of a toasted cheese sandwich. Comfort food was always good when you were feeling sick. When he complained about his arm hurting she gave him some children’s pain medicine.
All evening Ben talked nonstop about Dr. Seth. And football. She made a mental note to pay more attention to the football games on television, so she’d have a clue who the Packers and the Bears were. It was up to her to fulfill both parental roles in Ben’s life.
Especially considering how easily Seth Taylor had made an impression on her young son.
Too bad Seth’s entire attitude toward her had changed once he’d discovered she was a single mother. Her cheeks burned as she belatedly realized he now knew she’d lied to him about having a man in her life. During the crisis with Ben she hadn’t even thought twice about it when Seth had asked if there was someone he could call to be with her.
His gentle caring toward both her and Ben had been very sweet. Nice. Yet she imagined he was the same way with all his patients. She and Ben hadn’t been anything special. Besides, he’d never even hinted that he was still interested in going out with her, the way he had when they’d first met.
The ache in her chest intensified. Ridiculous to feel hurt. Seth wasn’t the first man to avoid her after finding out about Ben.
And she doubted he’d be the last.
Which was exactly what she wanted, right? Right.
Finally it was time to tuck Ben into bed. His eyes were practically sliding closed, yet he still talked about Dr. Seth.
“Mom? Do you think Dr. Seth would be willing to come over to play football with me and Joey?”
She reached over to smooth his hair away from the dressing covering the sutures above his left eye. “Have you forgotten your broken arm?” she asked dryly. “You won’t be catching footballs for a while. Once your cast comes off I’ll play with you.”
“But you’re a girl,” Ben protested.
A difficult point to argue. And, really, what did she know about football? Not much. “What about Joey’s dad? Doesn’t he play football with you boys?”
“Sometimes. But Joey’s dad goes on a lot of business trips. That’s why I was hoping Dr. Seth would play with us.” His earnestly hopeful face tugged at her heart.
“I don’t know, Ben,” she said, trying to let him down gently. “He’s a very busy doctor at the hospital.”
Ben scrunched up his face. “Doesn’t he ever get a day off?”
“I’m sure he does. But you have to wait a few weeks for your cast to come off anyway, so let’s not worry about that now. How about closing your eyes and getting some sleep? You’ll need to go to day care tomorrow. I bet the kids will be excited to sign your cast.”
Ben managed to smile, even as his heavy eyelids were already sliding closed. “G’night, Mom.”
“Good night, Ben.”
Two hours later she envied Ben’s ability to sleep. She was still tossing and turning. Even a cup of her favorite tea didn’t help. All she could think of was how much Ben must be missing having a father. Why else would he have become fixated on Seth so quickly?
She knew, better than her son, how much misplaced trust could hurt. Hadn’t Tristan left her when she’d needed him the most? Seth was a nice guy, but that didn’t mean he’d be a good choice to even consider starting a relationship with.
She needed to keep Seth at a safe distance.
For Ben’s sake and her own.
CHAPTER FOUR
SETH had picked up an extra night shift for Simon Carter, who’d caught some sort of flu bug. He didn’t mind giving up his Saturday—the ED staff possessed a strong culture of teamwork. The night had been steadily busy, but not crazy, giving him too much time to think about Kylie. Her image would pop into his mind at odd moments, making him wonder how she and Ben were doing.
Not his problem to worry about her son, but he couldn’t seem to stop himself from thinking about Kylie anyway. He’d even run into Cheri, the new nurse from the second floor, in the cafeteria during his night shift, but although she’d been openly friendly with him, indicating she was interested, he hadn’t asked her out as he’d originally planned.
Kylie Germaine was messing with his head, big-time.
He slept in on Sunday, and then prowled around his condo, searching for something to do to keep his mind off Kylie. Belatedly remembering his mother’s box of family photos, which he and his siblings had found after her death, he hauled it into the living room and sat down to sift through them. The pictures of his smiling, happy parents, along with him and his older siblings at various birthday parties and holidays, made him feel sadly nostalgic.
And the sad memories only reinforced the very real reason why he avoided relationships.
They’d lost their father too young. After all these years he still missed him. Missed both his parents. The loss made his chest ache as he looked back over the happy moments captured on film. Even the family camping trips, with all the problems they’d tended to bring, had been fun.
Nothing could bring them back.
Sorting the photos into three stacks, trying to be fair as he divided up the pictures for himself and his siblings, wasn’t easy. When he reached