AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Every chance I get.” She gestured to the small, crowded farmhouse, the dated kitchen, and the sagging sofa in a living room scattered with toys. “If you lived in a place like this, wouldn’t you want to escape into the magic of books?”
“I don’t know. It seems like your mom keeps this place real nice,” he said, noting the cheery blue curtains at the windows and even though the kitchen was small, the counters were still clean, and the floors looked as if they’d been recently swept and mopped. “But I get it. And I love to read, too.”
The girl’s eyes widened. “You do?”
“Yeah. I love books. Always have. I was probably a little like you, growing up on a farm andescaping into books whenever I had the chance. I’ve got a couple of older brothers who sometimes give me a hard time for being a book nerd, but I don’t care. I think book nerds are the coolest.”
She grinned up at him, lifting her chin and pushing back her shoulders. “I do, too.”
They spent close to an hour at the Lambert farm, Maisie taking extra time to give each child her attention. Emma curled onto her side in the porch swing, and Dodge was pretty sure she fell asleep for most of the time they were there.
As they were saying their goodbyes, Maisie held the baby out to him. “Can you hold her a second while I tell Emma goodbye?”
Dodge took a step back, vigorously shaking his head as he held his hands up, palms out as if warding off an attack. “No. Nope. No.”
Maisie laughed as if he were making a joke. How could she know how deadly serious he was? But there was no way he was holding that baby.
Except Maisie didn’t give him a chance to refuse as she plunked the precious little girl into his arms and essentially let go, leaving him no other choice but to hold on to her.
The baby, who he guessed to be older than one but less than two, had wispy blond curls all around her head and wore tiny denim shorts and a pink shirt that read, “Daddy’s little girl”. She curled one arm around his neck and reached up with her other hand to rub her fingers across his whiskered cheek. She smelled like baby shampoo and animal crackers and offered him a happy grin that showed four perfect tiny teeth as she said, “Hi,” in the sweetest baby voice.
“Hi,” he said back, his voice raspy as he choked out the word.
The baby must have thought he was playing with her, because she let out a bubble of giggles that made her blue eyes seem evenbrighter. The sound, so innocent and sweet, practically ripped his heart out.
I can’t do this.
His breath was stuck in his throat, and it felt like a vise was squeezing his chest. He couldn’t seem to pull any air in or push any out. He swallowed at the giant lump that had formed in his throat.
This baby was so perfect—so adorable and cute—her whole life ahead of her.
She grinned up at him, and that was it—the finalstraw.
He couldn’t take it.
Molly had come up beside him, and he passed the baby to her, handing her off as if she were a hot potato burning his hands.
Free of the child, he made a break for it, practically running to his truck and slamming the door behind him after he got inside. He gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles going white from clenching it so tightly as he waited for his heart rate to slow down. Dipping his chin, he pressed his forehead into the top of the steering wheel, swallowing hard as he fought a sense of panic.
Maisie climbed into the truck beside him, a look of concern on her face. She rested her hand on his shoulder, and he jerked away, as if her hand were a sharp knife that might cut him.
“Hey. Are you okay?” she asked, sounding worried. “What’s wrong?”
He shook his head, trying to find his voice. It came out hoarse and rough as he said, “I’m fine. I’m just suddenly not feeling very well. Are you ready to head back?”
“Yeah. Sure. Do you want me to drive?”
His gaze went from her face down to her splinted wrist and slinged arm, then back up to her face again.
“I could manage if you’re really feeling sick,” she assured him.
“I’ll be okay,” he said taking a drink from a water bottle that he had stuffed in his door. Usually his shirt sleeve, he wiped the perspiration from his brow, then started the truck and pulled out of the driveway, thankful to be leaving the Lambert farm and that adorable baby behind.
They started down the mountain, both of them quiet, Maisie still looking concerned while Dodge worked to get his emotions back under control. He hadn’t lost it like that in a long time. But that baby…she reminded him of…
Stop. Focus on the road. And breathing.
Maisie’s phone buzzed in her bag, a short vibration signaling a text. She pulled it out, and Dodge looked over and caught her smile as she read the message.
