Part 9 (1/2)
”Nope. I wonder how long it took some marketing person to dream that name up.” He stood up and took his plate to the sink. ”I'm going to take a shower.”
”Try not to use all the hot water this time.”
He made a sound that sounded suspiciously like a snort. ”It's hard to do that when I'm only in there five minutes.”
Hannah stood up and pushed in her chair. ”Five minutes? Try fifteen.”
Jackson looked back over his shoulder. ”The only reason I'd ever spend fifteen minutes in the shower is if I wasn't alone.” Grinning at her shocked expression, he continued on his way to his room.
Three weeks later Hannah met him at the door of the house. ”I was just getting ready to text you. You didn't forget about cla.s.s tonight, did you?”
”Of course not. I'm loving these childbirth cla.s.ses.”
”That's obvious. If I didn't know you were incapable of it, I'd accuse you of flirting with the teacher.”
Jackson followed her inside. ”Incapable of flirting? Every man can flirt.”
”You don't flirt with me,” she accused.
”Do you want me to?”
A shy smile touched her mouth. ”Yes, I think I would.”
He hung his coat on the rack. ”Note to self. Commence flirting with Hannah. Immediately.”
She slapped him on the arm. ”Not immediately. We need to eat first.”
”I agree. It's hard to flirt when my stomach is growling.”
”I made chicken fettuccini.”
Jackson scratched his cheek thoughtfully. ”That's the pasta with the white sauce and broccoli, right?”
”Yes. When I made it before, I had to bribe you with brownies to get you to try it.”
”What were you going to use as a bribe today?” His eyes slowly dropped to her mouth.
Hannah felt a quiver of feeling go through her. What was going on? ”Nothing; you told me you liked it.”
”I do like it, but I know something I'd like more.”
This time she couldn't stop the color that rose in her cheeks. Moving away from him, she asked in a strained voice, ”What can I get you to drink?”
Jackson grabbed the mail off the table. ”Whatever is easiest.”
Glad he hadn't noticed her reaction, she reached into the cabinet for a gla.s.s and took her time filling it with ice. She needed a minute to catch her breath and regain her composure. Who would have thought Jackson would be so good at flirting? Or that she'd find it so disturbing?
As she sat beside him and pretended to eat, she tried to downplay what happened. It was inevitable that her feelings for Jackson would evolve. What she hadn't considered was how conflicted she would be about it. There was a part of her that wanted to open her heart to him, to be a wife to him in every sense. His gentleness and understanding merited a response that she was finding more and more difficult to withhold from him. What stopped her wasn't the fear that Jackson would hurt her; it was the very real possibility that she would hurt him. He ought to have someone who could love him wholeheartedly, not someone who offered so little in return.
As they walked down the long hallway of the medical building, Jackson glanced at the woman at his side. He'd been speaking nothing but the truth when he admitted his enjoyment of the childbirth cla.s.ses. These weekly meetings had done more to draw him and Hannah together than all the other hours spent at home. Jackson didn't know whether it was the atmosphere of the cla.s.s itself or the various activities they partic.i.p.ated in, but their relations.h.i.+p was changing.
His dreamy musings were interrupted by the arrival of the instructor. In her hands, she carried two life-size baby dolls. Jackson's suspicions quickly became a certainty. Tonight he would be exposed, and everyone would know that he'd never been anywhere near a baby. He vaguely knew diapers and bottles were involved, but he couldn't contain his surprise when the cla.s.s was shown the proper use of a rectal thermometer. There was no way he was going to do that!
Hannah's whisper reached his ears. ”How do you like the cla.s.s now, Jackson?”
He gave her short ponytail a gentle tug. ”Whatever you do, don't volunteer us to go first.”
Her eyes danced with mirth as she acted as if she was going to raise her hand. He reached forward and captured her hand, bringing it down on his thigh. Before he could enjoy this small triumph, she pinched him. Giving her a look that promised retribution, he released her hand to rub his leg.
When Baby Lucy finally found her way to them, Hannah did everything on the list without once looking at the instructions.
”How do you know all that?” Jackson asked.
”I took a childcare cla.s.s to get certified for working at a daycare.”
He sighed with relief. ”That's great; you can teach me what to do.”
”Are you going to be one of those dads who disappear when it's time to change a diaper?”
”I'll do diaper duty if you take care of that.” He pointed to the thermometer.
She giggled. ”You should have seen your face. You turned as white as your s.h.i.+rt.”
”You're not going to let me live that down, are you?”
”No way. Do you know how hard it is to find something to tease you about?”
”It appears I'm going to find out.”
She slid her fingers down his bare arm. ”I won't do it too often. Just enough to keep you on your toes.”
One eyebrow lifted. ”I don't know whether to be scared or excited.”
This comment produced another pinch on his leg.
In the end, all the breathing exercises were unnecessary. Much to Hannah's disappointment, the baby she'd hoped to deliver naturally stubbornly refused to move from the breech position. Three days before her due date, Jackson drove her to the hospital for a C-section and less than two hours later, Sophia Lynn Steadman was born.
Jackson stood at the window in the maternity ward. Was that tiny person wrapped in a blanket going home with them? His chest felt tight and tears pooled in his eyes. How could something so little inspire such immense feelings? He hadn't cried since his father's funeral. Why was he crying now?
Impatiently wiping his eyes, he took one last look at his daughter before returning to the room where Hannah lay sleeping. The nurse had told him they would be waking her soon so she could feed the baby. Jackson planned to get something to eat during that time. He didn't want to embarra.s.s Hannah by being present when she nursed the baby.
She opened her eyes as he approached the bed. He couldn't resist bending down to kiss her cheek. As he did so, she touched his face.