Winter Vows, page 36
She leaned back in her chair and thought about the kisses they’d shared. She was still daydreaming, a smile on her lips, when Lizzy poked her head in. “You ready to grab some lunch?” she asked, then did a double take. “Or would you rather tell me what put that smile on your face?” She came in and sat down, clearly making her own choice about which took precedence. “Dylan, I suppose.”
“Why ask when you think you already know the answer?”
“Because, contrary to all the rumors, I’m not infallible. Sometimes my diagnoses are off.”
“Not a smart thing for a doctor to admit to,” Kelsey teased. “Malpractice suits being what they are these days.”
“Don’t remind me.” Her expression sobered. “How’s Bobby doing? I didn’t get to see him before I left the ranch today.”
“Overall, he’s doing a whole lot better than I would have predicted. Even so, first thing this morning I called that child psychologist we liked so much back in med school. You remember the one?”
“Handsome Harry?” Lizzy recalled.
“We liked him because he was brilliant.”
“Yeah, right,” Lizzy teased. “Who actually noticed that?”
“I did,” Kelsey insisted. “And so did you, so stop it. He agreed with Dylan that Bobby’s probably more worried about me leaving again than about his dad coming back. Bobby had one bad spell last night right before bed, but Dylan talked to him and that seemed to do the trick. He slept straight through the night.”
“Dylan, huh? He’s still spending a lot of time around the house, even though his job is done?”
“Don’t look at me like that,” Kelsey protested. “It’s not like he spent the night. Well, he did, but—”
“Oh, really?”
“Lizzy, cut it out.”
“He’s a great guy.”
“Yes, he is,” Kelsey agreed. “And he was a rock during all of this, but he has his own issues to deal with and so do I. The timing’s all off.”
“Today, maybe,” Lizzy noted. “How about tomorrow?”
“We’ll see.” It was as much of a commitment as Kelsey was prepared to make until she and Dylan could have some time together to sort things out.
* * *
Dylan sat outside Kit’s house and mentally rehearsed what he intended to say to persuade her to have the custody agreement amended. He needed to have every argument in place, needed to remain absolutely calm. Anything else and he would blow his best chance at getting back into Shane’s life. He could always go to court, but this way was preferable. Funny how a little maturity could make things a whole lot clearer.
He’d arrived without any advance warning, figuring that the element of surprise was on his side. Kit’s defenses would be down and she would be alone without her new husband there to shore up any protests she might have initially.
“It’s now or never, pal,” he muttered under his breath. He got out of the car and walked across the street. Kit had the front door open before he could knock.
“I was wondering when you were going to decide to come in,” she said, meeting his gaze evenly. She didn’t seem especially surprised to see him. Nor did she seem as dismayed or angry as he’d anticipated.
“I see your radar’s as good as ever,” he said, managing a grin to take any sting out of the words. “You look good, Kit. Great, in fact.”
“Are you trying to butter me up for something, or do you mean it?” she asked, studying him thoughtfully. “You actually mean it, don’t you?”
He nodded. “Is that such a big surprise?”
“You rarely noticed how I looked while we were married, not after the first year, anyway.”
The truth hurt. “I’m sorry,” he said, meaning it. She shrugged. “It’s in the past. I’m happy now.
How about you?”
“I’m getting there. There’s just one thing missing.”
She regarded him evenly, then sighed. “I’ve been expecting this. Come into the kitchen. Can I get you some iced tea or some lemonade? You used to like that.”
Relieved that she hadn’t gone ballistic right off the bat, he nodded. “Lemonade would be great.”
She poured the drink into a tall glass filled with ice just the way he liked it, then handed it to him. Rather than sitting, though, she stood by the counter, watching him warily.
“Okay, out with it,” she said.
He was surprised by her demand. “Were you always this direct? I don’t remember that.”
“No,” she said. “I learned from my mistakes. Maybe if I’d told you what I needed a whole lot sooner, we wouldn’t be where we are today.”
The comment stunned him. It was the first time he could recall her being willing to share any of the blame for what went wrong in their marriage.
“I don’t know,” he said honestly. “I probably still wouldn’t have known the meaning of compromise.”
She laughed. “You really were used to being king of the roost in that family of yours, weren’t you? Big brother could do no wrong.”
“Is that how you saw it?”
“That’s how it was,” she said without rancor. “And they might fight you tooth and nail over anything and everything, but heaven forbid anyone else should question your decisions. It was daunting.”
He tried hard to remember that part of the past, but all he recalled was the mounting tension between him and Kit and his inability to do anything to lessen it.
“I’m sorry for that, too,” he told her.
She shook her head. “Amazing. Two apologies in one day, when I didn’t think you were capable of any.”
“I’m—”
She held up her hand. “Enough. Why are you here, Dylan? It’s not to take a walk down memory lane.”
He took a deep breath and dived in. “I’ve been thinking a lot about Shane lately.” He looked into her eyes. “Wondering if I made a mistake.”
“He’s happy, Dylan.”
“I know that,” he said, fighting against an unreasonable tide of misery. Was he wrong to be asking this of Kit? Of Shane? Was it too late to stake a claim he never should have given up in the first place?
“But you miss him, anyway,” she guessed. “Yes. Does that make me totally selfish?”
“No. Sorry. It just makes you human. You’re his dad, Dylan. He’s the best thing you ever gave me. I’m not surprised you want to know him. I would, if our roles were reversed.”
He began to feel hopeful. “Can we work this out? Or is it too late?”
She regarded him with surprising sympathy. “As long as we’re still alive, it’s never too late to change things. Another lesson learned through our mistakes.”
“I don’t want to turn his life upside down, or yours and Steve’s.”
“Oh, Dylan, knowing his real dad loves him isn’t going to turn his world upside down. It’s just going to bring more love into his life. Steve and his boys taught me that when they accepted Shane and me right from the beginning. You’re the one who was so certain Shane would be better off without you. I never thought it. Not really. Neither did Steve, though he was grateful to you for wanting him to be a real dad to Shane. I always hoped you’d realize one day what you’d given up.”
He stared at her in amazement. He could tell that she honestly meant what she’d said, that whatever ill will had been between them was in the past. “You’re a remarkable woman, Kit. Why didn’t I know that?”
“Maybe I did my best to see that you never saw it,” she said wryly. She glanced at the clock. “Shane will be home soon. Want to stick around?”
“More than anything,” Dylan admitted, then felt panic clawing at his insides. What if he’d waited too long? What if Shane didn’t even know who he was? Would he be able to bear it? “Maybe we should do this another day. Shouldn’t you talk to Steve first? Maybe a lawyer?”
“This is between you and me and Shane,” she said. “The legalities can be worked out later. As for Steve, we agreed from the beginning that if you ever changed your mind, we’d amend the agreement. Frankly, what surprised us both—especially after those surreptitious little visits of yours—was that it took you so long.”
He shook his head at her ability to read him so well. “Why didn’t you just knock me upside the head back then and tell me what a mistake I was making?”
“Would you have listened?”
“Probably not,” he admitted.
“Which is exactly why it seemed like such a waste of time. Besides, I’ll admit to being selfish enough back then to want Shane all to myself. I figured you didn’t deserve him.”
Just then Dylan heard the rumble of what was most likely a school bus outside. His pulse accelerated.
“Is that him?”
Kit nodded. “Prepare to be caught up in a tornado.”
Less than a minute later, the front door opened, then slammed shut.
“Mommy!” The excited shout just about raised the rafters. “I’m home!”
“In the kitchen, Shane.”
“Baking cookies?” he asked hopefully as he ran into the room, then skidded to a stop at the sight of Dylan. He inched closer to his mother, eyeing Dylan warily. Kit kept a light hand resting on his shoulder, but said nothing. Dylan was at a loss for words.
“I know you,” Shane said after what seemed like an eternity. He looked up at Kit. “Don’t I?”
She nodded.
“You’re the man in the picture.”
Dylan felt as if his heart had stopped. “What picture is that?”
“In my room. Mommy told me it was my dad, my real dad. She said Steve adopted me, so he’s a real dad, too. She said I’m really lucky to have two dads.”
Dylan felt the sharp sting of tears in his eyes and blinked them away. If he and Kit had been alone at that moment, he might have bawled like a baby, he was so grateful to her for keeping him alive in Shane’s mind. He glanced up at her and mouthed silently, “Thank you.”
Shane tilted his head in a way that was pure Delacourt and studied Dylan. “Am I right? Are you my dad?”
Dylan nodded. “I am.” He hesitated, then asked, “Would you mind if I gave you a hug? I’ve really, really missed you.”
“I guess.”
Shane said it with the obvious reluctance and distaste of a typical boy his age. It was such a normal reaction, Dylan almost laughed. He knelt down, opened his arms and waited until Shane came to him. If it had been up to him, the hug would have lasted forever, but he knew Shane couldn’t possibly understand why such a simple gesture meant so much to him that he wanted it to go on and on.
The instant Dylan released him, Shane turned to his mother. “So, did you bake cookies today or not?”
“Chocolate chip,” Kit said, sounding as emotional as Dylan felt. “They’re in the cookie jar. Take two.”
Shane darted to the counter, climbed up on a step stool and reached for the cookie jar. He came out with a handful of cookies. Grinning, he held them toward Dylan. “You want some? Mom makes the best chocolate chip cookies in the world.”
“I remember.” He accepted the cookies, then asked, “Are these your favorites?”
“Pretty much. How about you?”
“Definitely.” There were a thousand other things he wanted to know, a thousand questions to be asked, but he knew he’d have to ease into this new relationship, give all of them time to adjust.
With Kit staying in the background, they munched their cookies in companionable silence. Dylan felt the situation called for something momentous, but maybe sharing chocolate chip cookies with his son was exactly right. He figured a fireworks display and whoops of joy would have put the boy off. This was—he searched for the right word—this was a beginning, he concluded. He knew, too, that he couldn’t have asked for—much less deserved—anything more.
“Mommy, can I go outside now?” Shane asked, already anticipating a positive response and heading toward the back door.
Kit nodded. “In the yard or, if you want to ride your bike, on the sidewalk out front. Nowhere else, okay?”
“Got it,” Shane said. At the door, he glanced back at Dylan. “Are you gonna be my dad for real from now on?”
“I’d like that very much.”
“Do I have to go away with you?”
“No,” Dylan said, thinking of another little boy who’d been taken from his home all too recently. “I’ll come here, if it’s okay with you and your mom and dad.”
“Will you bring me stuff sometimes?”
“Shane!” Kit protested.
“Well, Jimmy’s real dad brings him presents all the time.”
Dylan winked at him. “Oh, I think you can count on me bringing you things from time to time, if your mom says it’s okay.”
A smile spread across Shane’s face. “Two dads. This is so cool.”
And then he bounded out the door, letting it slam behind him.
Just like that, as if in answer to a prayer, Dylan had his son back. And it was all because of Kelsey and another little boy who’d come into his life and made him see what he’d given up.
He knew then that he didn’t want to wait, couldn’t wait to bring the two of them into his life forever. Waiting could cost a man everything that really mattered. He would never risk that kind of loss again.
* * *
Dylan impulsively stopped and bought the biggest diamond in the jewelry store on the way back to Los Pinõs. Kelsey was probably figuring he’d start out slow, maybe ask for a date. He intended to go for the gold right from the start.
He found her at the clinic, surrounded by kids getting preschool physicals. He shuddered at the number already clutching lollipops as proof that they’d bravely withstood their shots. Kelsey caught sight of him in the waiting room and stumbled over whatever she’d been about to say to the mother standing with her. Then she deliberately glanced down at the chart in her hand, gathered her composure and went on as if he weren’t there. As soon as mother and child were on their way, she beckoned to him.
“Mr. Delacourt, come on into my office.” She smiled at the remaining patients. “This won’t take long.”
Dylan followed her into her office, then shut the door. He studied her in her crisp white lab coat and decided she looked just as sexy in that as she did in those shorts she’d worn around the house. Apparently he was going to get turned on no matter what she wore. Good thing, too, given what he was planning for their future.
“You’re back sooner than I expected,” she said, moving behind her desk as if to keep a safe distance between them.
“I couldn’t stay away.”
“How did things go with Kit?”
“I’ll tell you about it later. Have dinner with me.”
“I can’t,” she said too quickly. “I shouldn’t leave Bobby again tonight.”
Dylan regarded her intently. “You’re not getting nervous about being alone with me, are you?”
“Of course not,” she retorted indignantly, but there were bright patches of color on her cheeks.
“Tsk, tsk, Doc. Fibbing doesn’t suit you.”
“You come to dinner at my house tonight,” she countered as if that would prove her bravery.
“With Bobby as chaperone? How convenient,” he taunted.
Her chin rose at that. “He has a very early bedtime.”
Dylan grinned. “Things are looking up. How about you, darlin’? Do you have an early bedtime?” She stared at him. “What has gotten into you?”
“I’m a man on a mission.”
The statement clearly disconcerted her. “What sort of a mission?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.”
“Tell me now. I’m an impatient woman.”
“Here? You want me to tell you here, in your office, with all those people just outside?” He followed her behind her desk, leaned down until his mouth hovered over hers.
“Mmm-hmm,” she murmured.
“I was thinking more along the lines of something with moonlight and roses, but if you say so...”
She swallowed hard. “Dylan, what...this isn’t about...you’re not going to...”
He touched a finger to her lips. “Hush. Let me say it.”
“I don’t think—”
“It’s not the time or the place,” he agreed. “But what the heck? We’re an unconventional pair. We do things our own way. Why not ask you to marry me in your office, especially now that I’ve seen just how cute you are in that lab coat?”
“Marry you?” she echoed, clearly stunned. “You’re asking me to marry you? Are you serious?”
He waved the jewelry box under her nose, then gestured for her to take it. “See for yourself.”
She put her hands behind her back as if she didn’t dare. Dylan opened the box instead. Kelsey gasped. Her eyes widened in wonder.
“You are serious.”
“Every bit as serious as one of those needles you’ve been poking around with today.”
“Why? What?” Her gaze searched his face. “Dylan, are you sure?”
“That I love you? Yes. Absolutely. Seeing Shane again also made me see that I don’t want to waste any more of my life being separated from the people I love. You’re one of those people. You and Bobby.”
“Just like that?” she asked incredulously.
He nodded. “Just like that.”
She shook her head as if to clear it. “Dylan, I can’t think.”
“Don’t think. Feel. What do you feel right now?”
“Overwhelmed,” she said at once. “Dizzy.”
He tucked a finger under her chin, waited for her to meet his gaze. “And?”
