C.J. Hill - Baby Dreams And Wedding Schemes

But Sasha held his gaze steadily, willing him to accept Cody’s distress. And her solution to it. When he inclined his head in a nod, she let her breath out in a whoosh of relief.

“And I suppose you have yourself in mind as this cheerful, animated person who is only too willing to sacrifice herself for the good of our family. To do her Christian duty, in fact.” His sigh was full of long-suffering patience.

She nodded slowly, keeping her gaze fixed on him. “Well, I don’t know about sacrifice myself. But, yes, I do have a certain perspective that you seem to lack.”

He muttered something disparaging.

“I beg your pardon?”

“I said there’s always one. At least.” His voice was full of bitterness.

She frowned. “One what?”

He glared at her angrily.

“One do-gooder busybody who thinks she knows exactly what my son and I need in our lives. And she usually volunteers herself as that solution.” He paused to stare at her expectantly. When it became obvious to him that she had no idea as to the direction of his thoughts, Jacob Windsor clarified matters in a cold, mocking tone. “As Cody’s new mother. And my wife.”

Sasha couldn’t help it, her eyebrows rose to their full height as her eyes widened in shock at his words.

“I’m not proposing anything of the sort,” she informed him in a squeaky, high-pitched croak that was totally unlike her usually low voice.

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll get ’round to proposing fairly soon, Miss Lambert. They usually do.”

Fury rose like a red flag in front of a bull and Sasha’s reaction was just as quick. She slapped her hands on her hips and surveyed his seated form from her standing position.

“Well, they are not me! Of all the patronizing, rude—”

“Forget it,” he said snidely. “I’ve heard it all before. The pie, the little discussion, the motherly concern. They’ve already been used.”

“Not by me they haven’t. I couldn’t be bothered.”

The look he favored her with just then sent her temperature soaring several degrees higher. Which was not a good sign, Sasha decided angrily, releasing a breath that puffed the bangs off her forehead.

“Lest you faint away from shock,” she said gratingly, struggling to hold on to her temper, “I take great delight in informing you that I have not the least intention of becoming anyone’s wife.”

“Uh-huh.” He nodded smugly. “That’s what they all say. At first.” He twiddled with the empty pie plate sitting in front of him as he spoke. “I’ll give you about five minutes until that tactic changes. The next step is sugarcoated sweetness.”

“Ooo-ooh.” Sasha’s hands formed fists at her sides as she blinked away the red tide of murder from her gaze. She planted herself directly opposite him and leaned in, holding her face mere centimeters from his.

“You may think you’re God’s gift to this earth, Reverend,” she rasped. “But let me be the first to have the temerity to suggest that I don’t find you so irresistible.” She refused to look away from those black depths. “Oh, I’d like to have a child like Cody, make no mistake about that.”

“I thought so.” The superior look on his face was shortlived as she prepared her ammunition and fired with both barrels.

“But to take you into the bargain seems an awfully high price to pay to be a mother.” She stiffened her backbone with barely concealed fury.

“Men!” She spat the word out in disgust, “Let me tell you, buster. Minister or not, I haven’t the least interest in you or any others of your kind.” Her eyes held his, refusing to look away from their piercing intensity.

“I am a career woman, dedicated to pursuing her own interests and livelihood. I don’t need a man to support me or to hold me down or to nurture. I’m fully capable of building my own life.” Her teeth hurt from clenching and she eased up on her jaw just a fraction. “If and when I decide to have a child, there are the facilities available. I don’t need you to accommodate me there. Thank you very much!”

Sasha could feel the heat radiate off her face as she ended the tirade and wondered if she’d been too blunt. At least he had the grace to look embarrassed.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I just naturally assumed that you were another—”

She cut him off. “Don’t naturally assume anything about me, Mr. Windsor.” Sasha tossed her head back angrily. “I like children, a lot. That’s all. Period. No strings.”

He nodded. “Fine. I understand.”

She searched his gray eyes but saw nothing save a faint remnant of suspicion and perhaps a hint of relief.

“What do you suggest I do about Cody, Miss Lambert?”

She sucked in a breath of air and allowed a slight softening to mold the curve of her straight lips. At least he had decided to listen to her opinion concerning Cody’s welfare. His gray eyes glinted at her.

“Thank you for your interest in him. And I really do apologize. I guess I was way off base.”

“Yes, you were,” she agreed pertly. “I am only thinking about Cody.”

He nodded gravely. “So am I.”

Sasha took that as a green light and proceeded to offer him her advice. “Well, Rev,” she began irreverently, enjoying the frown that drew his thick black eyebrows together.

Do him good, she told herself. Obviously thinks he’s hot stuff.

“The first thing I’d suggest is that you go down to Booker’s and see if you can find another goldfish to replace Henry. And eventually you’re going to have to talk to Cody about this strange idea he has regarding his mother’s death.”

He nodded, obviously considering her advice.

“I know. I did try, but when we moved and my mother was with us, I thought he’d forget about it. He hasn’t had a nightmare for quite a while, but obviously Cody still thinks about Angela. I guess we’ll just have to go over the whole thing again.” He heaved a sigh that lifted his wide shoulders high. “I’m not anxious to go back to that era.”

Sasha watched him covertly.

“You know, part of the problem might be that he’s by himself all the time,” she suggested softly, and watched as the Reverend Jacob Windsor frowned at her criticism, his back straightening in his chair.

“I spend as much time as I possibly can with my son, Miss Lambert.”

Sasha could hear the ice crackling in his voice and decided to drop that aspect. For now. She stood and carried the dishes to the sink, stacking them haphazardly.

“I’m sure you do, Rev. But tonight, I’m going to spend the evening showing Mr. Cody Windsor what a good time is like in Allen’s Springs.”

Sasha smiled widely. She liked kids, especially their capacity for love. She hadn’t had much to do with them lately; not with the store and all. Of course, Allen’s Springs usually attracted an older clientele to its rejuvenating mineral waters, although parents and children did come to the lake in the summer. And since she’d moved from Toronto, her siblings had found it expensive to visit.

This was exactly what she needed to get over Dwain, she told herself. Just what she needed to be young and carefree once more, no longer tied to a man who demanded straitlaced perfection and unending cloying devotion in a little town where their every move was relayed back to his fawning mother.

“How?”

She turned in surprise. The Reverend Jacob Windsor stood behind her, a look of expectation on his narrow face.

“Well, let’s see...” She paused, thinking madly. “Cody and I are going to go on a picnic.”

She grabbed a basket from the closet shelf and considered the contents of her fridge. When a choking sound penetrated her consciousness, she turned to find her guest eyeing the lake trout stretched out across her refrigerator shelf, its glassy eye fixed on them both.