A knock sounded at the door, but Stacey didn’t wait for anyone to answer. She’d been bursting through that door as long as he could remember. “Hey, Rachel, I’m here,” she called as she made her way to the den. Dressed in a winter-white coat, she carried her baby on her hip with ease. Piper wore a red coat and cap, and her cheeks were flushed with good health. She stared curiously around the room with her big, green eyes.
“Give me that sweet baby,” Rachel said, rushing to reach for Piper.
Piper allowed herself to be taken from Stacey, but the baby watched to make sure her mama was in sight. Rachel unfastened the baby’s coat and took off her cap.
Stacey shrugged out of her own coat and glanced from Rachel to Colton. “What’s this about a consultation? Why on earth would Colton need a consultation from us?”
Rachel’s face lit with mischief. “Colton asked me what women really want. We need to brainstorm Colton’s love life.”
Stacey looked at Colton in confusion. “I always thought Colton got along as well as he wanted to in that department. I’ve heard from a few girls who—” She cleared her throat. “Well, they seemed to like him just fine.”
“Thank you, Stacey. I have gotten along just fine in that department, despite my sister’s opinion,” he said in a dry voice.
Rachel jiggled the baby on her hip. “Well, this one must be different if you’re asking me what women want,” Rachel said.
Colton checked his watch. Thirteen minutes to go. This was going to feel like an eternity.
“Who is this girl?” Stacey asked, curiously gazing at Colton.
“He won’t tell,” Rachel answered for him.
Colton figured his sister was good for something.
“Well, what kind of woman is she? Country or city?” Stacey asked.
“If she’s here, she’s only one kind,” Rachel said. “Country. We have no city to speak of.”
“Hmm,” Stacey said, and Colton again resisted the urge to squirm. “You could take her to dinner.”
“Out of town,” Rachel added. “People are so nosy here.”
“Flowers would be good,” Stacey said.
“He said flowers are too obvious,” Rachel said.
Stacey frowned. “Too obvious?” she echoed.
“What if I just wanted to cheer her up?” Colton asked. “What if I don’t necessarily want to date her?”
Rachel scowled. “Oh, that’s a totally different matter. You don’t want to be with her?”
Colton ground his teeth. “That’s not the priority.”
“So, you may want to be with her in the future?” Rachel asked.
“Let’s deal with the present,” he said in a grumbly voice.
“In that case—” Rachel said.
“Just visit her,” Stacey said firmly. “And let her talk, maybe about what’s been going on with her. Try and keep the conversation light. Nothing heavy.”
“Small talk,” Rachel said cheerfully.
Colton frowned. “What the hell is small talk besides weather?”
Both Stacey and Rachel laughed. “Nothing too deep,” Rachel said. “You can even talk about clothing.”
Colton scowled. “Clothing?” he echoed.
Stacey and Rachel exchanged an amused glance. “Work on it,” Rachel said. “Read the paper. There may be something there you can chit-chat about.”
“You could take her to get ice cream,” Stacey said.
“In the winter?” Colton asked.
“I love ice cream any time of year,” she confessed.
“If you really want to cheer up a woman, you could take a DVD of a chick flick and watch it with her,” Rachel added.
Colton made a face. “If you say so,” he said.
“Well, you asked,” Rachel said with a bit of a testy tone. “Is this girl sick or just depressed? I know you said flowers are too obvious, but you could just happen to have some extra chocolates in your truck. Chocolate makes just about everything better.”
“Except labor pains,” Stacey said. “Chocolate doesn’t help with labor pains.”
Colton cleared his throat. He didn’t like the direction this conversation was headed in. “I think I’m done with my dinner now.”
“I’ll take your plate,” Rachel said. “You take Piper.”
Colton pulled back.
Stacey shot him a look of surprise. “Oh, for goodness’ sakes. You’re not afraid of a baby, are you?”
“Of course I’m not afraid,” he said, lying through his teeth. She was cute, but she was so little.
“Then, you can hold her,” Rachel said, pushing Piper into his arms. “She’s not radioactive.”
Colton held the baby away from his body, staring into her face. She squirmed in his hands.
“You need to hold her closer,” Stacey said. “She feels insecure in that position.”
“I’m not gonna drop her,” he said.
“I know that, but she doesn’t,” Stacey said.
He sat and gingerly set her on his lap, and she stopped wiggling.
Piper cooed at him, lifting her finger toward his face. She seemed to stare at his every feature. What amazing concentration she had. He inhaled and caught a whiff of sweet baby smell. Colton felt a strange sensation inside him, as if the baby was trying to communicate with him. She was a cute thing. He felt an odd protective feeling for the child even though Piper wasn’t his. It was as if he was suddenly driven to keep her safe. At the same time, he was terrified she was going to start screaming any minute.
“You look so nervous, Colton. I can take her,” Stacey said, lifting the baby from his arms.
Colton felt a huge sense of relief. At the same time, he wouldn’t mind breathing in Piper’s sweet scent again.
“So, did our advice help?” Stacey asked as she shifted Piper onto her hip.
Colton couldn’t stop his gaze from flowing down her curvy body, then up again. A flash of what her nude body might look like slid through his brain. Colton gulped. Stacey—his sister’s friend, the literal girl next door—was unbelievably sexy. Colton wondered if he was going insane.
“Isn’t she sweet?” Stacey asked.
Colton lifted his head in a round nod. “Sweet,” he said. But frightening, he thought, although he would never admit it in a million years. Colton was no baby expert, and he had no idea what to do with a tot like Piper. For that matter, he wasn’t sure what to do with all the forbidden thoughts he was having about Stacey.
* * *
Later that night when Stacey had finally put Piper to sleep, she headed for her own bed after she’d washed her face and brushed her teeth. She couldn’t shake the image of Colton holding Piper. The baby had taken to Colton almost immediately. He didn’t know it, but Stacey did. Colton had looked wary about Piper, but the baby had clearly found him fascinating. She’d stared into his face as if she’d wanted to memorize every feature.