Annie Claydon - Saved By The Single Dad - A Single Dad Romance

‘Will you and Cass look after him for me? I just want to close my eyes; I don’t think I can sleep.’

‘Of course.’ Sue had prepared the Moses basket that she’d used for her children and Jack took Noah, setting him down in the cradle. But he immediately began to fret and Jack picked him up again, soothing him.

‘Now what do we do?’ Cass whispered the words at Jack. Sue and Martin had quietly left at the first suggestion of sleep, and Lynette’s eyes had already drooped closed. It seemed that they were quite literally left holding the baby.

Jack chuckled quietly, nodding towards the easy chair in the corner of the room. ‘Sit down. Over there.’

‘Me?’ She was suddenly gripped with panic. ‘You want me to hold him?’

‘I’ve got things to do. And it’s about time he got acquainted with his aunt.’

It was almost a bitter thought. Holding her sister’s baby and not her own. But in the peace and quiet of the room, candles guttering in their holders and a bedside lamp casting a soft glow, it was easy to forget that. Cass plumped herself down in the chair, wondering what Jack was going to do next.

‘Suppose I drop him?’

‘You won’t.’ Jack seemed to be able to manage the baby in one arm while he picked up a pillow from the bed in the other hand, dropping it on to her lap. ‘Here you are. That’s right.’

The sudden closeness felt so good she wanted to cry out. Jack’s scent, mingling with that of a baby. Instinctively her arms curled around Noah and she rocked him gently, holding him against her chest. He fretted for a moment and then fell into a deep sleep.

‘I just want to wake him up. See his eyes again...’ She looked up at Jack and, when he smiled, Cass realised that all the wonder she felt must be written clearly on her face.

‘Yeah, I know. Let him sleep for a while; being born is a tiring business.’

Jack fetched a straight-backed chair from the kitchen and sat in the pool of light from the lamp, writing notes and keeping an eye on everyone. When Cass could tear her gaze from Noah, she watched Jack. Relaxed, smiling and unbearably handsome. She envied the shadows, which seemed to caress his face in recognition of a job well done.

When Noah woke and began to fuss a little, Lynette was immediately alert, reaching for her child. Jack delivered him to her and this time there were fewer grimaces and less messing around to get him to feed. Cass watched from the other side of the bed and, when he’d had enough and fallen back into sleep, she curled up with her sister on the bed, holding her hand until they both followed Noah’s example and slept.

* * *

The morning dawned bright and clear. Jack had managed to sleep a little, in the chair in the corner of the room, and now he had heard from the HEMS team. They were flying, and would take advantage of the break in the weather to take Lynette and Noah to hospital.

Despite the early hour, a few people had gathered around the village green. An excited chatter accompanied the landing of the helicopter and a ragged cheer went up when its crew followed Jack towards the vicarage.

He said his goodbyes to Lynette and Noah inside, keeping his distance as the HEMS team took them outside with Cass. Jack wondered if this would be the last he ever saw of her and, despite all his resolutions, he found himself staring at her, as if to burn her image into his mind. But she waited for Lynette and the baby to be safely installed in the helicopter and then jogged back to stand at his side.

‘There goes your last chance of getting out of the village today. The roads are still blocked.’ Cass’s eyes seemed to be fixed on the disappearing speck in the sky.

Jack nodded. ‘Yours too.’

‘What does that make us?’ She turned her querying gaze on to his face.

Jack shrugged. ‘It makes us people who know our families are safe, and that the village might still need us.’

‘It’s not easy...’

‘I don’t think it’s meant to be.’ Jack’s decision to stay had been made in the small hours of last night and it had torn him in two. Doing his job and being a good dad was a complex and sometimes heartbreaking juggling act.

‘Well, it’s done now. The only thing I can do to justify it is to make today count.’ She smiled suddenly. ‘Hungry?’

‘Famished.’ He looked at his watch. ‘What time’s breakfast?’

‘Not for a couple of hours. We’ll raid the kitchen.’

The kitchen was empty and she made toast while Jack made the tea. She rummaged in the cupboard, finding a couple of jars, and picked up two bananas from a crate in the corner. Then she led the way through to her private hidey-hole in the church porch.

‘What is that?’ It appeared that instead of choosing what she wanted on her toast, Cass was going for everything.

‘Chocolate spread, then peanut butter and mashed banana. Try it; it’s really nice.’

‘Maybe another time. When I’m planning on not eating for the next two days.’

‘A good breakfast sets you up for the day. You should know that; you’re a medic.’

‘Yeah. Perhaps I’d better not mention the sugar in that.’

She shrugged. ‘I’ll work it off.’

They ate in silence. His first slice of toast with peanut butter and his second with chocolate spread. Jack supposed that since he was going to eat the banana afterwards, he couldn’t really poke too much fun at Cass’s choice of breakfast.

It was still early and the glow of a new day, diffusing gently through the thick ancient glass, seemed to impose a relaxed camaraderie. Grabbing meals at odd hours after working most of the night. Talking, saying whatever came to mind without the usual filter of good manners and expediency. It felt as if anything could be asked, and answered.

‘Is there someone waiting for you when we get out of here?’

She shrugged. ‘Lots of people, I imagine.’

‘I meant a partner...’ It was becoming important to Jack to find out about all the subjects that Cass seemed to skirt around.

‘Oh, that.’ Jack wondered whether she really hadn’t known what he was talking about. ‘Big red truck. Makes a noise...’

‘You’re married to your job, then?’

She nodded, taking a bite from her toast. ‘You?’

‘I never married. And I don’t get much time for socialising any more; when Ellie came along I had to make quite a few changes.’

She turned her querying eyes on to him and Jack wondered whether she wanted to know about him as much as he wanted to know about her. It was strangely gratifying.

‘Then you have a past? How exciting.’ The curve of her lip promoted an answering throb in his chest which made it hard to deny how much he liked it when Cass teased him.

‘It’s not that exciting.’ Looking back, it seemed more desperate than anything. Desperate to find the warmth that was missing from his broken home, and yet afraid to commit to anyone in case they let him down, the way his father had let his mother down.

She gave him that cool once-over with her gaze which always left his nerve endings tingling. ‘Bet you were good at it, though.’

That was undeniably a compliment, and Jack chuckled. ‘I kept my head above water.’

Her eyes were full of questions, and suddenly Jack wanted to answer them all. ‘Ellie’s mother was the daughter of one of my dad’s climbing partners; we practically grew up together. I went off to university and when I got back Sal was away climbing. It wasn’t until years later that we found ourselves in the same place at the same time, for the weekend...’

‘Okay. I’ve got your drift.’ Cass held up her hand, clearly happy to forgo those particular details. ‘So what about Ellie?’

‘Fifteen months later, Sal turned up on my doorstep with her.’