Michelle Major - Suddenly a Father

Millie straightened once more, shock evident on her face. “Brooke’s mother died?”

He gave a curt nod. “She should have never come down there like that. Things were too unstable.”

“It was a big risk.”

He looked past her, his guilt weighing so heavily that he finally had to explain in detail how he’d destroyed so many lives. “Stacy had called and emailed me over the course of several months. I thought she wanted to get together again and was avoiding her. I left her no choice but to track me down. In the end, I couldn’t help her because I was pinned under the rubble of the building. I held her hand in those last moments, but that’s all.” He gingerly crossed his arms over his chest. “Her parents were taking care of Brooke, but Stacy made me promise to look after her. She left custody to me, a man who didn’t even know his own daughter.” He shook his head, still unable to believe the events that had brought him here. “I had surgery on my wrist and ankle and then went to find Brooke.”

“The grandparents were willing to let her go?”

“For now.” He clenched his uninjured fist. “Brooke didn’t hesitate, which was the craziest part. Stacy had talked about me, had told Brooke she was going to find her father. My picture was in a frame on Brooke’s nightstand. I walked into their house in Atlanta, and she reached for me as if I’d been her dad forever. Like she’d been waiting for me.”

“Kids can be pretty amazing,” Millie whispered.

“I don’t know the first thing about being a dad, but I owe it to that little girl and her mother to try. Stacy’s parents still want to raise Brooke. I’m not sure what’s going to happen—there’s some nerve damage to my hand and it’s questionable whether I’ll be able to go back to my old job.”

“But you won’t leave Brooke?”

He heard the unspoken accusation in her tone and almost welcomed it. Everyone he knew had been tiptoeing around his future since he’d come back to the States. “I want what’s best for her. You saw me today. It’s highly unlikely that I’m it.”

“You’re her father.” Color flushed bright in Millie’s cheeks. “You can’t desert her now that she depends on you.”

He shrugged. “I’m in way over my head here.”

“I can help,” she answered immediately.

Jake could feel that tension radiated through her, an edginess at odds with her pixie haircut, hippie-girl sundress and shimmering skin. “Why do you want to help?” he asked, taking a step toward her. “What’s your story, Millie Spencer?”

A sliver of panic flashed in her eyes before she regulated her gaze. “I’ve worked at both elementary and preschools, but I’m between jobs. I’m almost finished with a degree in early childhood education and am taking a break from classes, which is why I came to visit Olivia. We didn’t grow up together, so we’re just getting to know each other. She invited me to Crimson while I have some free time. Getting to know someone and mooching off them for several months are two different things. I need a job while I’m here, and I’m great with kids.”

“Do you have references?”

“Of course. Although I just saved the beloved Bunny and cleaned your kitchen floor. I’d say that’s a pretty good reference for myself.”

He held up his hands, his right arm difficult to hold out straight. “Like I said, being a dad is new to me. I want to make sure I do the right thing for Brooke.”

She nodded, as if she approved of his answer. “I have a list of references in my car. I’ll get it before I leave. Is Brooke in preschool?”

He rubbed his hand across his face then pointed to a pile of papers stacked on a nearby desk. “Registration is on the to-do list. I can’t believe how wiped out I am by the time she goes to bed.”

“I can help,” Millie repeated.

“I can’t drive yet and have regular physical-therapy and doctor appointments.”

“That’s fine, too.” Her posture relaxed. “Olivia offered me the apartment above her garage. She and Logan live pretty close, so I can be here whenever you need.”

He shook his head. “There’s a guest suite off the family room toward the back of the house. You can stay there.”

Her eyes widened. “That’s not...”

“Look at me.” He shifted on his bad leg. “I can’t drive. Hell, I can barely bend down to pick something off the floor. If anything happens to Brooke, I want to make sure you’re close.”

He didn’t mention the blistering relief he already felt at not being solely in charge of keeping his daughter alive. Jake had managed through a lot of high-stakes situations, but nothing had scared him like the responsibility of fatherhood. He hadn’t realized how much it weighed on him until the possibility of Millie presented itself.

She continued to frown.

“I’m harmless,” he said, flashing his most convincing smile.

Millie’s eyes rolled in response. “Hardly.”

“I’m desperate,” he said softly.

Her smile was gentle and genuine. “That I believe. Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“Nothing about my life is good at the moment but...” His voice trailed off as Brooke walked back into the kitchen.

“The dryer dinged,” she said, bouncing up and down on her toes. “Is Bunny ready?”

“Nothing?” Millie asked.

“One good thing,” he amended. “She’s the only bright spot I have. I’m going to make things right for her.” He looked at his daughter. “What would you think about Millie becoming your nanny and helping with things around the house?”

“She’s Mary Poppins,” Brooke yelled happily. Her eyes widened as she turned to Millie. “Will you bring the glitters?”

“Of course.” Millie smiled then glanced at Jake, her expression wry. “I’m not quite Mary Poppins, but we’ve got a deal.”

* * *

“Are you kidding me?” Millie yelled as she burst through the back door of her sister’s house thirty minutes later. “Next time you should mention that you’re sending me into pure chaos before I get there.”

Olivia Travers stood on the far side of the island in the oversize kitchen. She shrugged her shoulders and tried, but failed, to hide the small smile that curved the corner of her mouth. “Would you have gone if I’d explained the whole story to you?”

“Gone where?” the woman sitting on one of the bar stools asked.

Millie recognized Olivia’s friend Natalie Holt from the last time she’d been in Crimson. A tiny pang of jealousy stabbed at her heart for the life Olivia had made in this quaint Colorado mountain town. Millie had never been great at cultivating friendships.

“To Jake’s.” Olivia drummed her nails in a nervous rhythm on the granite counter. “What happened?”

Natalie swiveled in her chair. “Yes, what happened? Jake was always my favorite of the Travers brothers. Tall, blond and wicked smart.”

“Well, now he’s tall, blond and a hot mess,” Millie answered, omitting the part about how terrified he seemed of failing his daughter.

“Emphasis on hot , I imagine.” Natalie nabbed a chocolate chip cookie from the plate on the counter. “Want one?” she asked Millie.

“Did Logan make them?” Millie asked, inching forward, temporarily distracted by her unwavering devotion to all things chocolate.

Olivia nodded and pushed the plate toward Millie. “I’m sorry, Mill. But he needs help. I knew you’d be able to get through to him. Logan and Josh are worried.”

“Then why is he alone with his daughter?” Millie couldn’t help the recrimination in her voice. “What kind of family leaves someone in his condition to fend for himself?”

“What condition?” Natalie made a face. “I didn’t even know Jake was in town. Why am I always the last to know everything?”