Erica Spindler - Cause for Alarm

In response Emma kicked harder and squealed louder, laughing at her mother's attempts to dress her. Kate shook her head in amused exasperation. "I guess not, you little stinker."

Kate bent, pressed her lips to the child's bare belly and blew, giving her daughter a raspberry. Emma froze, then let out a gurgle of delight. Kate used the moment to slip the garment over Emma's head, then ease her arms in. Before she could protest, Kate snapped up the legs and crotch.

She grinned at her daughter. "Gotcha."

Aware of time passing, Kate checked her watch and saw that Richard and his new assistant would be arriving in minutes-and she wasn't even dressed yet. After lifting and locking the crib rail, she wound Emma's colorful mobile, which the child would watch for as long as Kate could keep it moving, and dashed to her bedroom to throw on something she wouldn't be embarrassed to be seen wearing.

Sure enough, as she fastened the last button at the neck of her soft, swingy dress, she heard Richard arrive home. "Be right out, hon," she called from the bedroom door. "There's a bottle of white in the fridge and a red in the rack. Pour me a red, will you?"

Kate went to the mirror to check her appearance one last time. She confessed to being a little nervous at the prospect of meeting Julianna. Richard had done nothing but sing the young woman's praises, and when he had mentioned needing to put in some late hours, she had suggested they come to the house. They could all have dinner together, then he and Julianna could get to work while she cleaned up and tended to Emma. After all, she had teased, she wanted to meet this prodigy. He had teased right back, accusing her of being jealous of all the time he was spending with another woman.

She had laughed and kissed him.

She wasn't laughing a few minutes later when Julianna turned, smiled and held out her hand. "You must be Kate," she said softly.

Kate shifted Emma in her arms and took the woman's hand. From Richard's description she had expected a young, eager and unsophisticated woman. She had expected her to be pretty.

But not beautiful. Not mysterious and sexy-looking. She hadn't expected her to be so poised and self-confident.

And she certainly hadn't expected the almost possessive way Julianna looked at her husband.

"And you're Julianna," she said. "It's good to finally meet you."

The young woman shifted her gaze to Emma. Her lips curved into a small, knowing smile. "And this little beauty is Richard's baby. Emma Grace."

Kate bristled. "Yes, this is Emma. Our daughter."

Julianna looked at Richard. "I'd love to hold her."

He smiled. "Go ahead."

"No." Kate drew back instinctively as the girl reached out. Embarrassed by the involuntary action, she cleared her throat. "Sorry, but sometimes Emma doesn't react well to strangers. She needs time to warm up."

"Since when?" Richard said with a laugh, on his way out back to light the grill. "Let Julianna hold her. I'm sure she'll be only too happy to give her back if she starts fussing."

He was right. She was behaving like an overprotective idiot.

Kate handed Emma over, a lump forming in her throat. As she watched the younger woman cuddle and coo to her daughter, Kate fought the urge to snatch her back.

What was it about this woman that affected her like fingernails dragging across a chalkboard? Kate wondered. Why had she taken such an immediate and overwhelming dislike to her?

She was acting petty and jealous, Kate decided. A form of dementia brought on by an adult spending all her time alone with an infant.

Be that as it may, when Emma began to squirm, Kate used the opportunity to take her back. "You know babies," she said lightly, forcing a smile, "no one will do quite like their mothers."

"Richard tells me she's adopted."

Kate turned and looked at the other woman. Again, she wore that small, knowing smile. Not a smile, Kate decided, gritting her teeth. A smirk. As if she knew a delicious secret and it made her feel really superior.

Kate wanted to snap that adopted or not, she was still Emma's mother. But she didn't, managing to hold her tongue by reminding herself that this girl was one of Richard's employees. "That's right," she said coolly. "If you'll excuse me, I'll get the appetizers."

Much to her chagrin, Julianna followed her into the kitchen. "You must feel really lucky. I hear it's hard to find babies to adopt."

Kate counted to ten. Normally she didn't let people's well-meaning but sometimes hurtful questions about Emma's adoption get to her. Kate accepted the fact that her daughter was adopted as simply a part of who Emma was, one of the many things that made her special and unique. When someone made a stupid or offensive comment it was because they didn't know any better, and Kate always used the opportunity to educate them.

But Kate found something about this young woman sly. And smug. Julianna's comments rang not of naivete but of nastiness. Kate decided she didn't like Julianna Starr at all.

"We didn't find her, Julianna. We adopted her through a very reputable agency."

"Grill's hot," Richard announced, rubbing his hands together as he entered the kitchen. He crossed to the platter of Brie, strawberries and crackers and sliced himself a wedge of the cheese.

"Kate and I were just talking about adoption. I think it's so wonderful that you were able to adopt Emma."

He beamed at the young woman, and Kate nearly choked on a strawberry. Obviously, her husband did not feel the same way she did.

"We think so, too," he said. "In fact, we consider it a kind of miracle." Richard turned to her. "Don't we, hon?"

Kate smiled at her husband, loving him so much in that moment it took her breath away. "That we do."

"Why don't you give Julianna a tour of the house while I cook the steaks?"

Giving Julianna Starr a tour of her home was the last thing Kate wanted to do, but she saw no graceful way out of it. As they moved from room to room, Kate had the strangest feeling that Julianna had been here before, that she knew the layout of the house already, that she was familiar with the room designations, the decor.

Unsettled, Kate hung back slightly to see what Julianna would do. As Kate had suspected she would, Julianna took the lead, and Kate experienced the oddest sensation that she was being given a tour of her own home. The sensation made her skin crawl.

"And this is Richard's study," Julianna murmured. She moved into the room, and closing her eyes, breathed deeply through her nose. "It smells like him."

The hairs on the back of Kate's neck stood up. "Excuse me?"

"He's a wonderful man," Julianna said, looking at Kate. "You've been very lucky."

"You make that sound like my luck's about to change," Kate murmured, forcing lightness into her tone.

"Did I? Sorry." Julianna moved her gaze over the room, then fixed it on Kate once more. "I'd love to see the nursery. It's just down the hall, I'll bet."

"It is. But I'm sure there's nothing of interest-"

"Don't be silly, Kate. I have to see precious Emma's room."

She smiled at the infant, and Kate shifted her daughter to her opposite shoulder, the one farthest from Julianna. "All right, then. It's this way."

Kate led her down the hall to the nursery. When they reached it, Julianna rushed into the room, making a sound of pleasure. "It's a little girl's dream room," she said. "All pink and pretty."

She crossed to the dresser and the framed photographs that decorated the top. She inspected each, unabashedly curious. After a moment, she looked over her shoulder at Kate. "There are none of Emma and her daddy."

Kate stared at her, a chill moving up her spine. "We had one," she murmured, her mouth dry. "It was stolen."

"Stolen?" Julianna repeated, bringing a hand to her chest, looking horrified. "You mean someone broke into your home? How awful."