Susan Crosby - The Single Dad's Virgin Wife

He also liked how her hair smelled….

“We’ve been waiting for you,” David said as they came into the kitchen, a hubbub of conversation. Everyone held a glass of something pale and bubbly. David passed Noah and Tricia champagne flutes. Noah assumed the children’s flutes held sparkling cider.

“What’s going on?” Noah asked.

“I’m making a toast.” David lifted his glass toward Valerie. “To my beautiful bride-to-be—for agreeing to marry me, and for not making me wait. You’re all invited to our wedding, two weeks from yesterday.”

Tricia exchanged a look with Noah as they sipped the celebratory champagne. After a moment, he shrugged, apparently accepting the inevitable. She decided to make it a point to get to know Valerie and see for herself that Noah could relax about the quick marriage. She considered herself a pretty good judge of character.

Valerie shooed the men and children off to the family room while dinner was reheated.

“It’s a good thing they’re not depending on me to cook,” Tricia said as Valerie opened a couple of loaves of buttered sourdough bread and put them on a baking sheet.

“You don’t enjoy it?”

“My mom and I opened cans exceptionally well. And I make a mean PB and J sandwich.” She smiled at Valerie, who smiled back.

“The reverse is true for me. My mother was a housekeeper and cook for a family in Palm Springs,” Valerie said. “She taught me everything.”

“Does Hannah cook?”

“She’s not quite as into it as I was, but yes. But, you know, I couldn’t do what you do, Tricia. Teachers amaze me.” She gestured to a cupboard. “Plates are up there.”

Tricia grabbed plates, salad bowls, glasses and silverware and carried them into the dining room. “Tablecloth or place mats?” she called out to Valerie.

“Take your pick. They’re in the hutch.”

As Tricia set the table, she could hear the men and children playing video games in the family room. “They’re having a good time,” she said to Valerie, who was grating fresh parmesan cheese. Tricia leaned against the kitchen counter. “Can I ask you some questions about Noah?”

“You can ask, but I don’t know a whole lot. I haven’t spent much time around him.”

“Do you know if he’s always so serious?”

“I think I can safely say yes to that. According to David, Noah’s a workaholic. He never takes a vacation. He’s pretty much in charge and in control at all times. Doesn’t have a great deal of patience. Very action oriented. And he doesn’t like change.”

“Yet I heard he’s had a whole lot of nannies for the children. That’s change.”

“That’s where the lack of patience comes in, I think. The whole interviewing and hiring process is too tedious, so he takes the quickest route.”

“Does he date?”

“Not that I’ve heard.” Valerie had just taken the salad out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter. She half smiled at Tricia. “These Falcon men are hard to resist, aren’t they?”

Tricia straightened. “What do you mean?”

Valerie peeked around the doorway, making sure they were alone. “I started falling for David the first day I worked for him, too.”

“‘Too’? Oh, no. Not me. Uh-uh.” Tricia held up both hands. “I’m out of here in three months.”

Valerie frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I’m temporary. David hired me to buy time for Noah to find someone who will be permanent.”

“Does Noah know that?”

“I’m sure David told him.” And she’d mentioned she was selling her house, and that her room here was fine for the short term. He hadn’t flinched at either point. “So, tell me. What’s this about you falling for David on the first day?”

“I didn’t want to, but there it was. He makes me very happy. My daughter, too.”

“Why the rush to get married?”

Valerie took out the fragrant, bubbling lasagna and slid the bread under the broiler. Almost immediately the pungent scent of garlic filled the air. “Why wait? It’s right, and we both know it. Plus I won’t move into his bedroom until we’re married. I want to set a good example.”

“You mean, you haven’t slept together?” Tricia couldn’t keep the surprise out of her voice.

Valerie laughed. “Well…David often works from home. And Hannah does go off to school.”

“Oh. Okay. Good.”

“Good?”

Tricia nodded. “I’ll tell you why some other time.”

“I hope you’ll come to the wedding.”

“I’m not going to be here on the weekends.”

“Make an exception, please? I don’t have many girlfriends here. I’d like for us to become that. I’ll introduce you to my friend Dixie, too. She’s my maid of honor. You’ll love her. And there’s the bachelorette party, of course. You have to come to that.” She poured dressing on the salad. “Maybe you could tell the gang that dinner’s on? I’m sure it’ll take them five minutes to actually get to the table.”

Tricia stopped just outside the family room door and observed the activity. Noah sat with his back to her, watching David and Adam play a video game, complete with hoots and hollers and threats of maiming. Ashley and Hannah were intent on a second television, but Tricia couldn’t see the screen, so she didn’t know what held their interest. Zoe bounced a soccer ball from knee to knee, not an indoor activity, but Noah wasn’t objecting, which seemed odd.

Then there was Zach, who sat cross-legged at his father’s feet, not communicating with any of them, but taking in everything.

He spotted her and smiled. She smiled back. “Dinner is served,” she said to the room at large.

“You’re doomed!” Adam shouted to his uncle, who shouted back, “Not yet, I’m not!”

Noah got up. Ashley stood right away, too, and turned off the television. She and Hannah made their way to the door, grabbing Zoe by the arm and pulling her along. Zach held back, putting himself between Tricia and Noah.

“Dinner smells good, ” Zach said.

“Looks like your uncle got himself a chef in the bargain. Do you like lasagna, Zach?” Tricia asked.

He nodded.

“We eat a lot of pasta dishes and casseroles,” Noah said. “It’s an easy thing for Cora to fix that will keep and reheat well. Sometimes my other brother, Gideon, comes over on the weekend and we barbecue.”

They came into the dining room. It was obvious Noah sat at the head of the table, with David at the other end for tonight. Zach found his place farther down. Which left one empty seat, next to Noah.

Tricia expected at least a small amount of chaos with so many people, but it was all very…civilized. As an only child, Tricia had craved the noisy family dinner table she observed at some friends’ houses. Here there were five children and four adults and little conversation. David asked questions, and the children answered, but no one took it further.

After the dishes were done, Tricia excused herself to put away her things and then to look over the children’s past work. The third-floor classroom was huge. Each child had a desk. A computer workstation held two computers, but only one was connected to the Internet and was password protected so that the children couldn’t log on privately. Areas were set aside for art and music, and worktables for science projects or other messier tasks. The room was tidy and spotless.

The view was spectacular, as the room was made up almost entirely of windows that faced the surrounding woodlands, and no neighbors in sight.

After a while, Ashley came up the stairs, dressed in her pajamas.

“We’re going to bed,” she said. “If you’d like to say goodnight,” she added hesitantly.