As for Caden, he might be too young to understand the whole truth of what had happened, but in his own way, he had to be wondering where his mama had gone and why she wasn’t coming back to get him. Rachel was certain he must be missing her terribly.
She fought back the tears that sprang to her eyes. She needed to be strong for both Caden and Seth.
Her cat, Myst, diverted her attention when he appeared and flopped by her side, his purr like the deep revving of an engine as he groomed himself. Myst would make himself scarce for the rest of the day, having learned the hard way to avoid overexcited toddlers with grabby hands. He was a typical feline, antisocial to most humans except when he wanted to be snuggled and petted on his own terms, and even then he graced only Rachel and Zooey with that honor.
Mr. Picky was his nickname.
Rachel had just finished her coffee when Seth pulled his car into her driveway. She stepped forward to help him release Caden from his car seat. She laughed, her heart welling, when the little boy wrapped his arms around her neck and squeezed tightly.
“This ridiculous thing is more complicated than it looks,” Seth said of the five-point buckle. “It took me forever to figure it out the first time.”
“Car seats are one of my many areas of expertise,” she teased, but Seth nodded solemnly.
“I imagine so.”
A lump burned hot in her throat. It didn’t take a genius to realize he was thinking about all the things he didn’t know about raising a child, and Rachel mentally kicked herself for her insensitivity.
She was relieved when he changed the subject.
“If you have a moment, would it be okay for me to take a look at your backyard and the play equipment you currently have?” he asked, leaning down to scoop Myst into his arms. He stroked the cat, who in turn nuzzled under his chin, demanding his complete devotion and attention. “We can discuss your needs and then I will draw up some preliminary suggestions on how best to make this work.”
“How did you do that?” she asked, so stunned she forgot to answer his question.
“Do what?”
“Myst doesn’t like anybody, especially men.”
He scratched the cat’s ears and chuckled. “Cats like me. I don’t know why. I’ve never had one of my own. Hopefully, I have the same effect on horses and cows.”
Seth was such a charmer that Rachel suspected he might have that effect on every living creature he came in contact with, including every pretty young lady who crossed his path, and most of the older ones, too. Cats were especially intuitive, and Myst obviously thought highly of Seth.
But as far as the play yard went—
“Don’t worry about building anything for me. I’m officially absolving you of any obligation. You have way too much going for you to be concerned about my needs.”
She was worried about what she’d be able to do, with the recertification coming up so rapidly, but it wasn’t fair to bring Seth in on it. He’d just landed himself a baby. That took precedence over any problems she was experiencing.
She’d just have to figure out how to handle this herself. The most logical thing to do would be to break down the old play equipment on her own and rent a trash bin one weekend to get rid of all the pieces. She could clean up the backyard well enough to pass the inspection. New equipment would have to wait.
“No, Rachel. Let me do this for you. You’re helping me out so much by caring for Caden and with all the instructions you’ve given me.”
He made it sound as if she were a how-to manual. The thought made her smile.
“You’ll be paying me for the day care, remember? Although like I said earlier, don’t forget that the first week is on the house.”
“And you paid for me at the auction,” he shot back. He gestured toward the door. “I mean it. I don’t mind building you a new play yard. I know you said you have someone coming to assess the day care soon for recertification. This is important to you—and honestly, I think it will be good for me. Building a project like a playhouse that I know I’ll excel in will take my mind off all the stuff I don’t know how to do. So you see, you’re doing me a favor.”
She didn’t see how he could possibly smile after all he’d been through in the past twenty-four hours, but the toothy grin he flashed her worked its charm.
She was not immune.
How could she say no?
With Caden still in her arms, she led Seth out to the backyard and then let the toddler down to play while she talked to his new guardian.
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